Scholarships
by DarkHope24
Summary: What if, along with Haruhi, there was another scholarship student from the very beginning? Join Max on her adventures with Haruhi and the Host Club. Will she open up, or will she remain her impassive self? Find out! Rated T because I'm paranoid.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 - Haruhi's Friend**

Max sat on the windowsill with her knees pulled up to inches from her chest and her arms resting lazily on top. Her eyes roamed through Music Room 3, taking everything in as she leaned back against the wall. She just didn't get it, 'What is wrong with these girls? Does the tea brainwash them or something?' Watching as girls swooned over the "brotherly love act" and "princely act", Max had to resist the sudden urge either to vomit or to sprint as far away from this nightmare as she could get.

"Did you pick one?" A cool voice said to her left. Sighing, Max moved her feet to make room for Kyoya to sit down next to her. She rested her elbows on her knees, ignoring the gaze of the Shadow King . "Normally, everyone would have picked one by now," Kyoya pressed, hoping and failing to gain a new customer for the club.

"Yeah well, I'm not a normal girl," She spoke softly and in monotone.

It was true though, she definitely was not like any girl at this school.

Max Stanton, one of a kind. She has caramel hair with light highlights, reaching her lower back and bangs framing her face. There were many piercings in her ears, including a metal spiral on the top half of her right ear. She had forest green eyes; often her bangs would cover one side of her face, though not intentionally. Max has pale skin, not white pale, more like a creamy color and freckles danced across her nose and cheeks.

She wore the guys' uniform, well kind of. A fitted white blouse with the top buttons undone and her tie was loose around her neck. She adorned the blue blazer though she had the sleeves of both the jacket and blouse rolled up to her elbows. The black slacks went well with her slightly less curvy body, more than Haruhi obviously but less than most girls. Worn black combat boots with several silver buckles and zippers were practically hidden beneath the folds of her pants, they were a little too long for her. Don't make any mistakes, she's not short like Haruhi, but she's definitely not tall like the rest of the hosts.

Kyoya noticed the silver chain around her neck, indicating a necklace of some sort; that she always kept hidden in her shirt but she never seemed to be without it. He was also acutely aware of the scars that will be forever etched into the soft skin of her wrists.

Nobody ever confronted her about it afraid of her reaction, she could have quite the temper when she wanted to. They wanted to know of course why she had those scars, but they wouldn't push her. And besides, none of them looked very new so they knew she was fine for the moment.

Like Haruhi, Max too is at Ouran on scholarship though not academic. Actually, she's here on two different scholarships as Kyoya found out, one being art and the other being athletics. Odd couple one might think, but then again, she is an odd girl.

"Oh, we know you aren't normal-" one sly voice whispered in her left ear as another joined on her right side. 'Hikaru, definitely Hikaru,' Max noted absentmindedly.

"-But, that just makes you all the more interesting," the other voice, though an octave higher, was nearly identical to the first. 'And there's Kaoru,' She distinguished.

"You seem so uninterested in being here," Kyoya pointed out, "Why do you insist on coming every day?"

They knew why, of course. Her and Haruhi had started school the same day and being the two new kids, they decided to stick together becoming really great friends in the process.

"You know why," Max replied, rolling her eyes. "Besides, Haruhi wouldn't survive without me. Speaking of Haruhi, I think I'll go talk to her." With that said, she stood up and walked away from the trio of hosts who looked after her with mixed emotions; ranging from interest to confusion to even a little fear at her cold demeanor.

As Max strolled towards Haruhi's table to hopefully have some sort of intelligent conversation, she was intercepted by Honey who was clutching Usa-chan to his chest and tears were pooling in his large eyes.

"Max-chan?" He trembled.

Max kneeled down to his height, making the shorter boy blush but he hid his face behind his bunny. "What's wrong Honey-sempie?" She asked gently, not wanting to set him off into another one of his tantrums.

"Well…uh…Takashi isn't back from his kendo practice. And…well…I'm lonely, would you sit with me and Usa-chan?" Honey rushed the last part, feeling his face warm up even more. Squeals from surrounding customers could be heard, but Max ignored them the best she could.

She smiled at Honey, not her usual smirk or devilish grin, but a real and genuine smile. It was so beautiful, lighting up her whole face in a completely new way, though it was small; practically a quirk of the lips. Everyone, including the hosts and Haruhi, blushed at the sight of her rare smile.

"Sure, Honey-sempie. I'd love to sit with you," She chuckled as his mood immediately brightened and he all but dragged her to his table filled with sweets of all kinds.

Max sat down in a cushioned chair and crossed one leg over the other as her arms intertwined across her chest. Leaning back into the comfy seat, she stared off into space with her usual blank expression, her rare smile having vanished from her face.

Then, out of nowhere, she felt pressure on her lap. Uncrossing her legs, she looked down to see Honey struggling to crawl onto her lap with Usa-chan still in hand. He had a determined look in his eye that made him seem all the more adorable. She knew he could get on her lap easily if he really wanted to, he was just putting on a show for the fans. And weren't they excited to see what was happening, though slightly jealous.

Max sighed, picking up Honey and placing him gently on her lap so he could get to his sweets. "Thanks, Max-chan!" He cheered, already devouring a piece of strawberry cake. She merely nodded at him as she gingerly grabbed a chocolate chip cookie, munching on the warm crust. She wasn't that into sweets, but she was a sucker for chocolate, not that she would let anyone know.

Honey was already on his third cake by the time she finished her cookie. He had been talking animatedly with his customers for about a half hour and they hung onto his every word.

"Mitskuni," A deep voice vibrated from behind her. Both her and Honey turned their heads to see Mori standing there, indifferent as ever. The girls hushed in anticipation, for Mori was witnessing Honey sitting in the lap of someone who was not him. The Scandal! (Sorry I had to)

"Takashi!" Honey squealed, throwing his arms around Mori's shoulders. "You were taking so long at Kendo practice and I was getting lonely so I asked if Max-chan would sit with me! She said yes! Isn't she nice Takashi?!" Honey gushed, bouncing up and down on the stone-like man's shoulders.

"Hmm," Mori nodded at Max, a small smile adorning his usually expressionless face. He was glad his cousin wasn't alone while he was gone.

"It wasn't that big a deal." Max yawned, standing and stretching slightly with her hands over her head. She sat in one position for a really long time, making her muscles a little stiff. Her body craved movement and that's why she was such a great athlete. "Anyway, I better head out, it's a long walk back to my house. I'll see you tomorrow, Haruhi!" Max waved, her backpack slung over one shoulder and her other hand in her pocket as she strolled towards the door.

"Bye!" Haruhi waved back.

"Wait!" Max paused, her hand on the doorknob.

"A lady should not walk home alone," Tamaki shrieked dramatically, "Allow me to drive you home." He had walked up to her, took her hand and kissed her knuckles.

She lithely twisted her hand from his grasp and put it back into her pocket. "Don't worry about it Tamaki-sempie, I like the walk. Besides, you have club duties to attend to. Now, I'll see you tomorrow," She said one final goodbye, exiting the clubroom. There was no room for argument, they knew. She was a stubborn girl after all; but, they still didn't like the idea of her walking home alone.

As club came to an end, Kyoya heard many intriguing conversations floating through the girls all revolving around an extremely popular tomboy.

"I think Max should come here more often, it'd be nice talking to a girl for a change."

"I hope we get to see Max again soon."

"I wonder if Max will become a host?"

That last one gave Kyoya the extra confidence he needed in his plan to make Max a host. Now all he had to do was put the idea into Tamaki's head…simple.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 - The Rebel Host?**

"You are so going to be late to club," Max chuckled as she sprinted next to Haruhi. "I told you not to go to the library, I knew you would get too caught up in studying to watch the clock."

Haruhi rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I should have listened to you, sorry. Let's just hurry," Haruhi breathed out.

"I don't even know why I'm running, I don't need to be there on time," Max shook her head at herself, but there was no way she was leaving Haruhi alone with those perverts. Haruhi was just so innocent; Max wanted to protect that.

Haruhi rolled her eyes for the second time as they burst through the clubroom doors, only to find themselves in…the tropics?

Haruhi was still trying to catch her breath, but Max hadn't even broken a sweat. She stood there, green eyes looking at her surroundings with confusion and awe.

There were palm trees and vines everywhere as well as bright and colorful tropical flowers. Max also heard the sound of tropical birds, confusing her further. Eventually her gaze met that of the hosts dressed in tropical clothing, consisting of pants with several different designs and gold bracelets with feathery headdresses; all without shirts. Tamaki was definitely dressed as the "king" as he so often called himself.

"What's wrong with you guys?! It's like mid December!" Haruhi accused with narrowed eyes.

Max leaned into Haruhi, whispering in her ear, "Haruhi, they're all shirtless, don't question it!" She smirked. The hosts heard her and lightly blushed at the comment. Haruhi looked at her incredulously.

Tamaki offered a reply, in his usual dramatic way of course. "When it's cold outside, then it's time to offer a warm, inviting climate inside!" Tamaki continued to ramble on about the tropical paradise that the hosts created.

Max was standing next to Kyoya; she rolled her eyes at the idiotic actions of the blonde. Looking at the Shadow King, "You didn't happen to have anything to do with this, did you sempie?" She had a knowing smirk on her face as her eyes danced with mirth.

"The Host Club president makes all the final decisions when dealing with cosplay or otherwise," Kyoya explained, pushing his glasses up his slim nose. "Not to say, had a magazine of the tropics landed on his desk would give him the slightest inspiration." Kyoya smirked.

Max was going to respond when her arm was suddenly snatched by one of the twins, dragging her towards the changing rooms.

"We can't dress Haruhi up-"

"-But we can dress you up!"

Max's eyes bugged. "No way! Let go!" They were both dragging her now, having an arm each that was locked in their grasp as her feet skidded across the floor.

Haruhi looked at her friend with slight worry.

"Don't worry, Haruhi. We just want to see if we can up our profit," Kyoya muttered, writing something in his mysterious black notebook.

Haruhi sweatdropped, "Of course you're thinking about money."

"Besides," Honey said, suddenly appearing next to Haruhi. "Max always seems bored when she's here. It'd be nice if she could have something to do, right?" Haruhi thought for a moment, she nodded her agreement.

The hosts stood outside the curtain to the changing room, waiting to see what Max would look like in her tropical outfit. Hikaru and Kaoru's mom designed their clothes, including Max's; though, it was kind of last minute.

"Are you ready yet?" Hikaru shouted, sighing impatiently.

"There's no way I'm coming out there dressed like this!" Max retorted; she sounded angry.

"Don't make us come in there!" Kaoru smirked, knowing she would freak.

Hikaru's smirk matched his brother's. "You have until the count of ten!"

"ONE"

"Don't you dare!

"TWO"

"THREE"

"I don't think that's such a great idea," Haruhi sweatdropped.

"FOUR"

"FIVE"

"I swear I'll beat the hell out of you guys!"

"SIX"

"SEVEN"

She was running out of time, a plan quickly forming in her head.

"EIGHT"

"NINE"

Smirking, Max pushed aside the curtains. "TEN!" The twins jumped back in surprise as did everyone else. She had the curtain bunched up in her right fist as she held it away from her body.

Everyone blushed at her when they saw how she looked in the tropical getup. She had on a long, purple skirt that went to her ankles with a slit on the side exposing her shapely, freckled leg. Max wore a low cut, green sleeveless top with a gold sash wrapped around her waist. She had gold bracelets with different colored gems lining her arms to the elbow and several gaudy necklaces. She had a green and purple feather earring handing from her left ear, brushing her bare shoulder. Her headdress was made of colorful feathers and tropical flowers. She had put her hair into a low ponytail, exposing the smooth skin of her neck.

The guys gulped as they looked her up and down.

"Wow, you look incredible!" Haruhi cheered, a bright smile on her face.

"Thanks," Max said sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck. Her cheeks were tinted a light pink in embarrassment. Her gold sandals clacked lightly on the tile floor as she walked, she really was light on her feet as contrary to her tall figure.

"So, you'll be sitting over at the table near Honey-sempie's and Mori-sempie's table. Your guests will be there soon," Kyoya informed, blocking his red cheeks from them with his black book. She looked really good!

"Guests? You mean, like a host? I'm not going to be a host!" Max squeaked.

"Of course! You'll be a wonderful host!" Tamaki gushed as he spun around the room with Max in his arms. Her jewelry clinked and shook as they spun.

"Okay! I'll give it a try, but only if you let go!" Max begged, starting to feel slightly nauseous. Tamaki released her, and she swayed on her feet for a moment before steadying herself.

"Wait, so does this mean that I actually got requests?"Max raised both eyebrows in surprise. Why would anybody request her?

"Yeah! Max-chan, a bunch of people requested you," Honey cheered, hugging her leg.

"Whatever," She mumbled, crossing her arms and pouting slightly.

"You're so cute!" The twins snickered as they rubbed their cheeks against hers, holding onto her arms. Her cheeks flushed, but she ignored that to the best of her ability.

"Yeah, okay. Please stop," Max murmured, crossing her arms and sulking.

"You all have guests waiting, I suggest you get moving," Kyoya stated, the hidden threat in his words prominent. His glasses glinted with light as he smirked at the frightened bunch. With a rush of air, everyone was at their assigned tables for the day.

Max sunk into the couch with a sigh. She looked around at her customers; there were about four guys from D-class. She raised an eyebrow at them.

"Hey, I didn't think this was really your thing," Max chirped, smirking at the blushing students.

The first one, he had blonde hair and brown eyes, rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Well, we would never come here for the others, but you're pretty cool and we never get a chance to talk to you. So we kind of thought, why not?" The others nodded in agreement.

Max saw Kyoya out of the corner of her eye; she knew he'd be watching to make sure she kept her customers.

She wore a grin, looking at each of the guys at her table. "Cool, I'm glad we could hang out," Max chuckled as they flushed more. It was cute, how they wanted to talk to her but never did it during school. She was flattered that they had requested to see her.

After all the guests had left, the hosts and Max changed out of their cosplay and were lounging around the clubroom. The hosts were impressed, Max was able to keep her customers the entire session and she got even more requests for the next time; she made some real profit for the club.

Max was in one of the chairs with her legs dangling over one arm rest and her head resting on the other, her blue blazer hanging off the back. She looked at the black watch on her wrist, her green eyes scanning the numbers.

"Well, I need to go. But, this was fun," Max yawned, stretching from the couch. She grabbed her jacket and slung her black backpack with silver buckles and zippers over one shoulder.

"Hold on a second, Max" Kyoya said coolly. Max felt a shiver run down her spine at his smooth voice.

"Yes, sempie?" Max tilted her head.

"We were wondering if you would like to become a host, full time," Tamaki jumped up and down with excitement. The others looked at the caramel haired girl expectantly.

She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Sure, it'd be cool and it's not like I have anything else to do." She smiled at them, her genuine smile that melted their hearts; just as much as Haruhi's natural smile.

"Great!" The twins shouted, appearing on either side of her as if out of nowhere and leaning against her shoulders. She rolled her eyes at them.

"Yay! We can introduce you as a new host at the ball we are having on Friday!" Honey cheered, skipping in circles with little animated flowers dancing around him.

Max backtracked. "Wait, ball? As in, formal dancing and dresses kind of ball?" She stuttered, sweatdropping.

"Yeah, but don't worry-" Hikaru whispered in her ear, though she seemed unaffected.

"-We can teach you the dancing," Kaoru spoke softly in her other ear.

"Besides, Haruhi can't dance either," Kyoya pointed out.

"Hey! I can dance, just not formally," Max mumbled under her breath.

"And, we'll have our mom design a dress for you," Hikaru shrugged, "She makes all of the club's clothes."

"Yeah, sure," Max sighed."

Oh yes, preparation were to begin soon. This was going to be an interesting night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 - The Mishap at the Ball**

"Okay, time to practice!" Tamaki twirled dramatically into the room. Everybody ignored him, not wanting to get involved with his usual antics.

Haruhi was dancing as a boy, unlike Max who was dancing as a girl. So Haruhi was practicing with one of her customers, Kanako, who volunteered to teach her to dance. She was doing okay, apparently Kanako was a good teacher.

Hikaru and Kaoru were taking turns teaching Max how to dance because they couldn't decide who would do it, this is the compromise. Not that Max really minded, as long as she learned what she needed to. She was picking up the moves pretty quickly; she only stepped on Hikaru's foot three times and Kaoru twice, which is like ten less than she predicted.

"You're too stiff, just loosen up a little," Kaoru winced as she stepped on his toe for the third time.

"Sorry," Max mumbled, looking apologetic at him through her long lashes. He couldn't tell if she was apologizing for stepping on his foot or for messing up her dancing, but he didn't care. She looked so cute like that; he could feel heat rushing to his cheeks. Kaoru hoped she didn't notice.

Tamaki was sulking in his corner, growing mushrooms because he was too tall to dance with Haruhi in the girl role.

Mori and Honey were dancing, sort of. They were just spinning in circles around the room, but Honey was laughing so it was cute.

Once practice was over, they all sat around for a cup of tea. Well, Max had coffee; she didn't like tea much, but she did have an obsession with coffee bordering on unhealthy.

Eventually, Kanako left and it was just the hosts in the clubroom.

"Well, I'll see you guy tomorrow afternoon for the party!" Max waved, heading towards the pink French doors.

"Wait, Max! We have the dress that mom designed for you!" The twins synchronized, running up to her with a black dress bag in hand and a shoe box.

"We haven't seen it yet-" Hikaru started.

"-We wanted to be surprised, but we're sure you'll like it." Kaoru smiled at her.

Max returned the smile, taking the dress bag and shoes. "Thanks!"

[time skip, Friday night]

Max showed up to the ball fashionably late, as Tamaki would say. She laughed at herself for that thought. Tamaki is such a drama queen.

Her black heels clacked against the concrete as she delicately stepped up the stairs. Hikaru and Kaoru's mom did an amazing job designing the dress and shoes. The heels were about three inches and were open toed. They had straps that wrapped around her feet and ankles similar the ballerina shoes.

The dress was just her style. It was made of chiffon, soft and flowy. It was a crimson red color that contrasted well with her creamy, freckled skin. The hem ended just passed her knees and had an empire waist. The bodice was layered red fabric and it was a halter dress. Max had a silver necklace resting on her chest; the charm was a silver infinity sign with "FOREVER" carved into the metal. She never leaves home without it.

Her caramel hair was in a stylish braid that was draped over her right shoulder. Her bangs covering part of her face. She didn't wear any makeup; she never did, it wasn't her thing.

Max didn't want to admit it, but she was a little nervous to be here. This is the first dance she's ever been to.

Walking in the doors, she looked around trying to find someone she recognized. Eventually, she spotted Haruhi leaning up against a pillar off to the side, she wasn't really into the dance either.

Max smirked as she walked towards Haruhi; she knew that Tamaki would be heartbroken that he couldn't dance with Haruhi, so how jealous would he be when he saw Max dancing with her? "Hey, Haruhi," Max sighed. Surprisingly, the heels were rather comfortable so her feet weren't hurting.

Haruhi's eyes widened as she looked at Max. "Wow, you look great. Hikaru and Kaoru's mom did an awesome job," She praised.

"Yeah, well it's nice. You look great too, that suit is perfect on you," Max admired.

Haruhi looked down at her simple brown coat with gray slacks and black vest. She did like it, and it was comfortable.

"So, Haruhi. Would you like to dance?" Max giggled, holding out her hand to the Natural Host.

Haruhi smiled her natural smile and nodded. They went out to the dance floor and rocked back and forth. Max had her hands around Haruhi's neck and Haruhi's hands were lightly placed on Max's waist. They were smiling at each other; this was so funny.

"I can't believe we're actually dancing. You're doing pretty good, Haruhi," Max commented.

"This is pretty hysterical, and thanks," she replied.

The song ended not too much later; they chatted as they made their way off the dance floor.

Kanako was waiting, probably wanting to dance with Haruhi. Max stood off to the side as Haruhi took Kanako's hand and led her to the dance floor while the next song was starting.

All of the sudden, Haruhi was swept away by Mari and Honey leaving Kanako alone. Max witnessed this, so she slipped away from the party to follow the third years.

When she finally caught up, she noticed that they were all hidden in an empty classroom.

"What are you guys doing?" Max cocked a brow, placing a hand on her hip as she watched them. She noticed Haruhi was nowhere to be seen.

They all whirled around to see her standing in the doorway. They sucked in a breath once they saw her.

"Max, you look…wow," Kaoru breathed past the lump in his throat. Hikaru was speechless as he admired her in the scarlet dress.

"Oh, um thanks?" Max said sheepishly, rubbing her arm. "Be sure to tall your mom I love the dress, it's great." She smiled, making them all blush.

"Max-chan looks so pretty tonight! Right, Takashi?" Honey gushed, prancing around in his dark blue tux; Usa-chan wearing a matching one. Mori nodded his agreement, his cheeks still brushed with a light pink.

"So," Max started awkwardly, "where is Haruhi anyway?" The silence had stretched on too long for her liking and she needed at least some noise. That seemed to knock the others out of their stupor and they filler her in on their plan to get Kanako with her love.

"And, hopefully, they'll be together by the end of the night," Tamaki finished, a dreamy smile on his face.

"Well, I hope it works out for them, everyone deserves to be with their love," Max whispered so quietly they the hosts almost didn't hear it. She had a thoughtful look in her eye and she wasn't looking at any of them, more like staring at the floor. "I think what you guys are doing is really sweet."

They all smiled at her, even Mori and Kyoya!

Tamaki left to lead Kanako to the room where Haruhi was. The others, including Max, went to the balcony where they were going to announce the queen of the dance who would get a kiss from Tamaki.

By the end of the night, Kanako was reunited with her love.

"Now, ladies! It is time to announce the queen of the dance!" Kyoya spoke, his voice carrying over the entire crowd.

"The winner is-"

"Max!" The twins announced simultaneously. The freckled girl's eyes bugged out.

"W-what?" She stuttered.

"Yes, Max you won," Kyoya assured.

"And you'll be kissing-"

"Haruhi!" the twins grinned mischievously as Max sweatdropped and looked at the horrified Haruhi.

'Just a kiss on the cheek. Just a kiss on the cheek." Max chanted in her head as her and Haruhi took center stage.

Honey was sitting up on Mori's soldiers. "Hey, do you think that this is Haru-chan's and Max-chan's first kiss?"

The twins shrugged, leaning on each other. "Probably."

Tamaki went crazy; something about wanting to preserves his daughters' innocence. He rushed forward, hand outstretched to stop Haruhi from giving away her first kiss. But, he tripped on a random banana peel (we all know the twins put it there) and he accidentally pushed Haruhi forward, causing her and Max to kiss on the lips. The crowd cheered with excitement.

The girls pulled apart instantly, both covering their mouths and blushing furiously. Though, they broke into giggles a second later. They both understood that it was an accident.

So in the end, the night was rather unforgettable.


	4. Chapter 4

**This chapter is kinda long, I hope you like it!**

**Chapter 4 - Host Club Manager**

After a little mishap during the physical exams where Haruhi's gender was almost revealed, club returned to normal and everyone was enjoying themselves. The girls (and guys in the case of Max) were especially gleeful since they got to spend time with their favorite hosts.

The hosts and Max had all grown closer as well, closer than friends; more like one big family. Max even smiled more than she used to, though it was still rare.

The hosts, including Max, were dressed in kimonos for club today. Max's was a pale green with purple flowers and white vines swirling around the dark fabric. Her hair was up in a simple bun with loose strands framing her face and silver chop sticks placed in her bun to hold it together.

"Oh, Tamaki," one of the prince's many guests sighed. "Why, oh why are you so beautiful, so magnificent?" She had a dreamy look in her eyes as she gazed into his violet ones.

"So to be pleasing to your eyes…" Tamaki replied, lifting her chin and closing the distance between them to little more than a few centimeters.

"Tamaki, why are your eyes glistening? You're not going to cry, are you?" Another guest gasped, blushing as he looked at her.

"Your beauty, it brings me to tears being able to witness true exquisiteness," He sighed, a single tear running down his pale cheek.

"Really," Max whispered, rolling her eyes.

As she looked around, she noticed that many of the other hosts were tearing up as well. Now, Max was thoroughly confused. The twins had cried during their brotherly love act and even Honey shed tears when he lost his sandal.

Max witnessed as Haruhi bumped into one of the twins. A bottle fell out of their sleeve; Max caught it before it hit the ground because her reflexes are just that awesome. Looking at the label, she raised a delicate brow.

"Seriously, eye drops? Isn't that cheat-" Max was cut off by one of the twins, Hikaru she noted, placing a hand over her mouth and telling her to "shhh".

"Yeah, don't let the girls know. The boss is the only one who can cry without the drops," Kaoru whispered.

"Besides, girls just melt when they see a guy on the brink of tears," Hikaru added, removing his hand from her face, a little too slowly for her liking. She rolled her eyes at them, but turned on her heal and walked away; she tossed the bottle over her shoulder. Kaoru caught it.

By now, club had ended and they were all lounging around the clubroom just relaxing for once. They were all back in uniform, well partly; Max wouldn't put back on the jacket or her tie, and she kept her sleeves rolled up like always.

Max's green eyes lazily racked around the room; she was bored out of her mind. Eventually her eyes rested on the big pink clubroom doors, and she noticed that they were cracked open slightly and a girl was shyly hiding behind the intricately carved door.

She slowly stood up, walking towards the doors. This caught the attention of the other hosts, and Tamaki was there in an instant to greet their new guest.

He held out his hand and bowed princely. "Welcome to the Ouran Host Club, where-" He was cut off by the girl slapping him as hard as she could. He spun off in the other direction.

"Phony!" She screamed. "You're not a real prince, you're filling these girl's minds with lies! You're fake, bogus, a complete sham!" Each word seemed to impale Tamaki like an arrow. This girl was insane, Max decided as she watched this play out with bored eyes. "How did you even get to be King of this club?" She screamed, shaking with anger. She had reddish brown hair and crazed hazel eyes.

Max cracked a smile; it was pretty comical, but even more humorous was the twins rolling around on the floor laughing.

"Wow, you even got boss to invent a new move," one twin started, leaning up against his brother.

"The personal slow motion fall! That's rich," the other finished, grinning like his mirror image.

"Well, this is an interesting development," Max muttered, amusement in her eyes and a chuckled escaping her lips.

The insane girl locked her eyes on the innocent figure of Max, fuming. "What is a girl doing in my beloved Kyoya's Host Club?" She shrieked, her hair somehow resembling rattle snakes.

Max's pleasure disappeared and she scowled at this new girl.

[short time skip]

The hosts sat around Kyoya as they watch Tamaki sulk in his dark corner while the girl, now known as Renge danced around the room.

"Your fiancée?!" Max hissed at Kyoya, still angry about how Renge has been treating her. Honestly, if she could, she would pound that girl into the next millennia.

"Mommy was keeping a secret from daddy," Tamaki mumbled, drawing circles on the tile floor as rivers of tears streamed down his cheeks. Max didn't know when, or why Tamaki started calling Kyoya mommy and himself daddy, but she chose to ignore it to the best of her ability.

Renge was singing about a Kyoya that didn't at all resemble the Kyoya they knew. "Love at first sight! Watching him care for the beautiful roses in his garden…tending and comforting that poor injured kitten. Pure perfection," She sighed dreamily. Max's scowl deepened; this chick was just getting more and more annoying.

"Are you sure you mean Kyoya-sempie?" Haruhi raised a skeptical brow.

"Haruhi, don't be so uncaring, he's standing right over there!" the swins shouted/whispered.

"Can I just knock her out and we can be done with this mess?" Max grumbled, crossing her arms and pouting. Honestly, this situation was just bugging her more and more.

Renge continued as if she didn't hear a word they were saying, which she probably didn't. "A lonely soul. Priceless moments captured in a love simulation." She pointed at Kyoya, "And you look just like my beloved Ichijo Myabi from 'Uki Doki Memorial'!"

Max sweatdropped, her lips sets in a frown.

"Fangirl!" The twins accused. "I've never seen one before," Hikaru commented, hiding behind Max along with Kaoru.

"So she isn't your real fiancée?" Tamaki asked, hope in his eyes that 'mommy' didn't lie to him after all.

"No, I should hope not. I've never met the girl before and I certainly don't remember asking for her hand in marriage," Kyoya explained.

"You didn't think that this would have been relevant information to give us earlier?" Haruhi deadpanned.

"It didn't seem important, no. But, her father is a client of my father's so we must treat her with respect," He said, looking pointedly at the twins and Max.

"What?" they said at once, feigning innocence.

Renge snapped her fingers, gaining the others attention. "I've decided, I will be your club's new manager."

"What, no way! C'mon Kyoya!" Max whined.

"As I said, respect," Kyoya glared at her. Max is tough, she could easily take him on if she wanted to, but she wasn't in the mood. She was one of the few people who could actually stand his temper. Max just looked at him blankly as he continued to glare, the others cowering in fear behind her.

"Right," Renge said hitting her palm with her fist. "I'm, going to bake some cookies."

"Yeah, okay. Have fun helping her Haruhi!" Max said, trying to make her escape.

"Oh no, if I'm going in there, I'm taking you with me!" Haruhi ordered indignantly, dragging Max by her collar. She crossed her arms and pouted.

'So adorable,' the others thought.

[in the kitchen]

Max sat on the counter, swinging her legs back and forth as she watched Haruhi maneuver around the small kitchen, helping Renge cook lord knows what. "Hey, Max? Why don't you grab some ingredients and bake something?" Haruhi suggested.

Max shrugged, "I'm not really in the mood for cooking."

"So you do cook?" Haruhi filled the silence.

"Yeah, I do. My mom can't work her way through a kitchen to save her life and my little brother is too young to cook," Max smiled. Haruhi liked that thoughtful look that Max had, it made her look less intimidating.

"Haruhi! Haruhi!" Renge shouted from across the kitchen. "Should I add the sugar to the cream?" Haruhi nodded.

"How's the chocolate?" Haruhi asked, looking over at the redhead, only to see her trying to melt the chocolate over direct heat. "No, wait! Max, could you please help her?"

Max sighed, but hopped off the counter anyway. She may not have liked Renge, like at all, but she didn't want her to set herself on fire.

The hosts stood outside, awe struck at Haruhi in a cute, pink apron and Max actually baking. When they had finished, they walked back into the clubroom with a tray of cookies. Of course, Renge took them right to Kyoya. Tamaki was sulking because Renge had called him a faker, again.

Max grabbed one of the cookies and took a bite. "It's slightly burnt, but otherwise, not bad," She shrugged. The twins took advantage of the situation.

Kaoru walked up and took a bite of the piece of cookie that was sticking out of her mouth. "Wow, that is good," He said, locking eyes with her. Her expression was blank, but he tried to mask his blush.

"Max, you have some crumbs on your face," Hikaru whispered, licking the crumbs off the corner of her lips and cheek. He too was about to blush, but choked it down in hopes of gaining a reaction from her, which he didn't.

"You know, there's plenty of cookies to go around Kaoru. And Hikaru, you could have just told me and I would have gotten a napkin or something," Max deadpanned, gazing at them with slight amusement at their embarrassment.

"Yeah, well that's no fun," Hikaru mumbled, pouting.

Suddenly, Renge rounded on them. "All of your characters are lukewarm! There's no depth! Women love to swoon over tragic, handsome men!" At that she glared at Max, but continued anyway. "Without that kind of interest, women will get bored and stop coming to club! I will not let you ruin this club for my Kyoya!"

Of course, Renge came up with the idea to give all of the hosts new personalities and to even make a small movie about it. And, Tamaki loved the idea so everyone was forced to do it.

"You," She pointed to Tamaki, "are the popular heathrob of the school, but really you're a lonely prince who hides his insecurities behind false smiles." Tamaki's eyes widened at the truth hidden in her words; he might be better in this role than he originally thought.

"You," She pointed to Honey, "are the baby-faced thug who, despite his childlike appearance, is the school's most daunting brute." Honey had tears in his eyes at the accusation; he didn't like being called a brute.

"You," She pointed to Mori, "are Honey's childhood flunkie, you never leave his side." He raised a brow, he didn't really understand how it was much different than their relationship now, minus the thug part.

"You," She pointed to Haruhi, "are the honors student who is constantly bullied." Haruhi frowned, she didn't want to be a victim of bullying.

"You two," She pointed to the twins, "are the neurotic sports stars of the school. Your relationship is forbidden but you don't care because you only have each other." The twins grasped hands, not liking how easily she labeled them.

"And you," she glared at Max, "though I don't think you should even be a part of the host club, since Kyoya wants you here, I can live with it. Anyway, you are the tough one but deep down you're not tough at all. You use that façade to hide how weak you are." Max looked at her wide-eyed and a little hurt. The others noticed, but didn't comment no matter how much they wanted to. Each of the twins placed a hand on her slumped shoulder; she managed a strained smile for them.

"And, of course, you my beloved Kyoya are perfect the way you are," Renge smiled at him, hearts in her eyes.

Shooting starts tomorrow.

[time skip]

"Another basket scored by the Hitachiin twins!" A crowd of girls cheered, screaming and swooning at the handsome brothers. "I can't tell who made the shot, but they're so amazing!" One girl shouted, hearts in her eyes as the others eagerly agreed.

Hikaru was jogging around the pitch, waving at his fans and earning more praise from the crowd. All of the sudden, a crash was heard from the other end of the court.

"Kaoru!"

"Teacher, get us a stretcher, he's hurt!" Kaoru was lying on the floor, clutching his knee and wincing in pain. Hikaru rushed over.

Hikaru kneeled down next to his brother. Tears pricked his eyes, but he blinked them away. "Kaoru," He sighed, seeing his hurt brother.

"H-hikaru?" Koru stuttered. "You have to go on without me, win the game for us." The girls gasped at the brotherly love, screams erupting from the crowd again.

"This is my pain, not yours," Kaoru breathed, clenching his teeth in pain.

"No, Kaoru. It hurts me too, it hurts," Hikaru whispered, a lone tear rolling down his cheek.

_Your pain is my pain_

The background faded, giving way to the schools courtyard. It was raining, pellets of water beating down on the brothers and an onlooker.

"I envy the two of you," the calm voice startling the twins. They looked up to see Tamaki standing in the rain, soaked to the bone, hands in his pockets, and clothes sticking to his slender figure.

"Suoh-sempie! Why would you envy us?" Kaoru questioned, astonished at the confession of the blonde.

"You're the idol of the entire school," Hikaru added, looking at Tamaki with confusion.

Running a hand through his wet, golden locks, Tamaki said, "Idol, huh?" A humorless chuckle sounded deep within his chest. "What is the point of being worshipped, when the only reason I have it, is my appearance." He scoffed at his own words. "I'd much rather be alone than be praised for such a trivial reason."

_Damaged hearts cross each other_

Haruhi ran in the rain away from her two pursuers, dodging branches and maneuvering around puddles. Her pumping legs were aching and her breath was coming out short. She tripped on a tree root that was sticking out of the ground. Landing on her knees, Haruhi crawled to the nearest tree and slumped against it.

"Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. This is it for you, you little pest," Honey growled, staring down at Haruhi with hate in his caramel eyes. He had his hands stuffed in his pockets and there were shadows cast over his face making him even more menacing.

Mori stood to his right, a couple paces behind him.

_Those damaged hearts, passing through and damaging one another, what darkness lies within these boys' hearts?_

"You should have known this was coming, ever since you crossed me…" Honey scowled, taking a step further. Haruhi cowered against the tree.

Mori placed a hand on Honey's shoulder. "Mitsukuni, you need to stop this. Every time you hurt someone else, you're really only hurting yourself." Honey shrugged off his hand.

"Stop, Takashi! Don't make me beat you again!" He barked, the fire in his eyes growing.

_Has a savior come?_

"You shouldn't talk to your friend that way Haninozuka," Max said calmly, stepping out from behind the tree Haruhi was trembling against. Her hands, though stuffed in her pockets, were obviously balled into fists as her whole being shaken with repressed anger. The rain made her tousled uniform stick to her curves. Her soaked hair sticking in strands to her face and back.

"Well, if it isn't the other outcast at this school. I don't see why you're so worried about Takashi, he does anything I tell him to do," Honey smirked, snapping his fingers.

Mori shot out, grabbing Max by the arm and tossing her to the side like a rag doll. Her back made contact with the nearest tree, and she slumped to the ground. She groaned in pain, lifting her head to stare resentfully at the third years. Shadows cast over her eyes, but the single tear that rolled down her cheek did not go unnoticed, even in the rain.

"You think you're so tough, the savior of kids like that," Honey pointed to Haruhi. "Pathetic," he continued, "You're weak, useless, absolutely worthless." Max gritted her teeth.

Honey's eyes lost their menacing glare and began to water. "Taka…Takashi! Don't hurt Max-chan! Please stop!" He shouted, jumping onto his cousin's back.

"CUT!" Renge shouted, sounding quite angry.

Honey jumped down and threw himself into Haruhi's arms, hugging her tightly. "I'm sorry Haru-chan! I'll never say any of those horrible things again, I promise!" Haruhi patted Honey's head, a small smile on her delicate face.

"It's okay, Honey-sempie. I know you didn't mean it," Haruhi cooed, trying to calm him.

Mori walked over to Max, giving her his hand. She grinned, grabbing his hand. He hoisted her up like she weighed nothing, which is close since she weighs close to nothing despite her tall figure.

"You're, not hurt?" He questioned, cocking his head to the side.

Max wiped the fake tear from her cheek. "Nah, it takes a lot more than that to even scratch me," She said cheekily, her grin widening. "Looks like Tamaki-sempie isn't the only one who can cry without eye drops."As she walked away, she missed the blush that tinted Mori's cheeks and the smile that played on his lips.

"You need to stick to the script, Honey!" Max sighed as she overheard Renge's constant complaining. Max strolled over there, her shoulders relaxed and her eyes bored.

"Why don't you just shut the hell up," Max mumbled as she walked by. Renge heard it none the less, not that Max was really trying to hide the remark.

"What? You don't like the way I'm shooting my movie?!" Renge retorted, shaking her balled fist at the extremely relaxed girl.

"Not particularly."

Renge fumed. "We don't even need you in this movie! You are useless, there's no part for you here! Nobody cares! Why don't you just, GO AWAY!" She screamed, her hair on fire and her eyes ablaze.

Renge thought, for a split second, that she saw hurt flash in Max's eyes. It was gone too soon, there was no way she could be sure if it was ever actually there or if she imagined the whole thing.

But it was true. The hosts found out, all too late, that Renge was actually filming 'Uki Doki Memorial' live action. So, Max's part really wasn't needed. In hindsight, it should have been obvious considering the director that Renge hired was the producer of the game.

Max clenched her jaw. "Fine, whatever," She strained. Waving her hand behind her, Max walked away from the now satiated fangirl.

Renge tried not to feel bad, but she did kind of regret what she said. She may not like Max, but she didn't mean to be that heartless.

Max found a chair (you know, those movie set chairs that fold up and have the actor's name sewn into them), after having grabbed a water bottle. She removed her wet jacket and unbuttoned her white blouse, laying both over the back of her chair. She was now just in a damp, pale blue tank and white bra; her bare arms layered in freckles. Sitting down, Max started drinking her much needed water. She grabbed a towel that one of the director's assistants handed to her and dried some of her soaking hair.

She's not going to lie, what Renge said did hurt her; however, she'd never admit it, she did have her pride after all. Max had spent most of her life feeling weak and worthless, she was not doing it anymore.

Her grip on the bottle tightened. Max wished she could go back to the clubroom and draw, or maybe go for a run. Anything to get her as far away from this damned movie set as possible.

The others looked at Max worriedly, but they decided she needed a moment to herself. And, of course, they were furious with Renge for insulting their friend, but Kyoya said they had to play nice.

Eventually, Tamaki walked up to her, hoping to get her mind off of the awkward situation. "So, Max. What did you think of my acting?"

She looked up at the blonde, her green eyes dull. But, she smiled at him anyway. "You were great, sempie. Honestly, it surprises me you were able to pull off a role that seemed so unlike you."

Tamaki looked at her surprised for a second. "Yeah well, I think I might have found a new side to myself. Maybe I should explore it," He said thoughtfully.

"I don't know about that," Max said, catching him off guard. "I think you're fine just the way you are. You shouldn't change just because someone else told you too. And, I would miss the old you if you did."

He looked at her, completely baffled. He stuttered for something to say as a blush formed on his cheeks.

As Max continued to look at Tamaki, him stuttering none stop, Renge called out to Haruhi with her high pitched voice.

"Haruhi, come here!" She screeched, her voice just becoming more and more annoying. Haruhi went over to Renge with a resigned sigh; she was just as sick of this as everybody else.

Rounding the corner, Haruhi noticed two of Max's class - D guests leaning up against the wall of the building. She assumed they had come to watch Max's performance in the movie.

"I would like these two to be in the movie. They'll be the villains. The mafia will start causing trouble for our main characters and they will have to unite to fight them off," Renge said dreamily.

"Hey, what my dad does is none of your business!" One of the brutes shouted, angrily shaking his fist.

"And we are not going to be the villains in your movie! Who do you think you are? Telling us what to do!" The other growled, balling his hands at his sides.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever, just get into positions!" Renge ordered, crossing her arms stubbornly.

"Hey! Don't think you can tell us what to do just because you're in class - A!" He pushed Renge, causing her to stumble towards the filming equipment.

Haruhi reacted quickly, jumping behind her to cushion the collision with the equipment. Renge yelled out when they made contact, a loud crash echoing throughout the courtyard.

"Haruhi!" Tamaki shouted, appearing from around the corner of the building, Max not far behind. She heard the crash and wanted to make sure everyone was alright.

Upon seeing Haruhi, her best friend, on her knees and a tear rolling down her cheek; Max went ballistic. Tamaki knelt down next to Haruhi, helping her up. Max stormed up to the one who pushed her; the fact that they were her guests completely escaping her mind. She pushed him up against the wall, grabbing his collar and bringing his face close to hers.

Max was furious, her eyes full of a fury no one had ever seen.

"Max! It's not what it looks like!" He tried to defend, she only pushed him harder.

"Who did it?! Which one of you hurt Haruhi?!" She shouted, tightening her grip on his collar. The height difference didn't even matter as Max still seemed to be towering over him.

The others had gathered around, witnessing Max's rage.

Her tank had risen up slightly, showing the creamy skin of her stomach covered in freckles just like the rest of her. Her arms were shaking from anger and she looked ready to kill.

"Max, calm down," She heard Haruhi speak up from behind her. "It's not their fault, they were provoked by Renge. When she got pushed, I just tried to stop her from getting hurt."

"Yeah, it wasn't our fault!" The class - D students agreed, eagerly trying to calm her down. Max loosened her grip, eventually letting go completely.

Max walked up to Haruhi, placing her palm on the shorter girl's cheek. "Are you alright?" She asked softly, almost inaudible. She wiped away the tear that had escaped Haruhi's eye.

Haruhi nodded, "Yeah, my contact just moved. It irritated my eye, making me tear up a little; but, other than that, I'm fine."

Max nodded, turning back to the other guys. "I'm sorry I lashed out," she ran a hand through her hair, "I just don't like seeing my friends hurt. How about, to make it up to you, we have a private session at the host club. Just us," She smiled apologetically. She knew Kyoya would kill her if she lost two well-paying customers.

They nodded. "Would you wear a dress?" One of them asked.

"Don't push it," Max grumbled playfully. They left soon after, waving at Max.

"Please tell me you got all that!" Renge squealed. "Other than Haruhi losing his contact, that was absolutely perfect!"

Then, the sound of glass shattering reached their ears. Kyoya had smashed the lens of the camera with a rock; it's a wonder nobody noticed he was there.

"My camera!" The film manager cried, grabbing his hair in distress.

"K-kyoya?" Renge stuttered.

"I cannot allow the host club members be seen participating in actual violence. And besides, this whole thing has been quite a bother for the club and myself. I think it's about time you leave," He stated calmly, writing in his black notebook like always.

"N-no! You're supposed to be nice! Pat me on the head and tell me everything's going to be alright!" Renge complained, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"But, that's not the real Kyoya," Haruhi commented.

Max placed a hand on Renge's shoulder. The latter shrinking away from the intimidating girl. "You need to learn not to judge people; whether by looks or gender. Honestly, it's not how someone looks, it's their personality that matters." There was no malice in her words; her voice was completely monotone, but she looked at Renge as if she was scolding a child.

Renge choked on a sob. Max placed her hand back at her side and took a few steps away. She grabbed her water bottle and listened to what Renge had to say.

"I-I'm sorry I caused so much trouble for you guys," She apologized softly, not looking any of them in the eye. "Especially you, Max. I think I realize why we don't get along so well." She walked up to Max, leaning into her ear just as she was taking a sip of her water.

"It's because, Kyoya likes you!" Renge whispered so only Max could hear.

Max choked on her water, coughing uncontrollably. The others looked at her curiously, wondering what the redhead could have said.

"That is so far from the truth that I'm questioning your sanity; not for the first time since we met, might I add," Max deadpanned, refusing to look at the other hosts; however, her eyes were narrowed at Renge.

"If you say so," Renge sung, "though, having a rival might be kinda fun."

Max groaned, already walking away from the crazed teen. Suddenly, two pairs of arms snaked around either side of her waist.

"So, what did Renge say to you?" the twins asked, smirking at her.

A light blush coated her cheeks. She hoped they didn't notice, they did. "Nothing, she said nothing," Max replied, a little too quickly to be true.

The brothers raised their brows at her, but she just shook her head and escaped their grasp. They looked at her with curiosity and worry; and a little bit of jealousy because they could only guess why she blushed.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 - The Twins Fight!**

"Hikaru! Kaoru! I gave you two one job! And that was to maintain the club home page and update it with pictures, but I did not ask you to post a picture of Haruhi looking like this!" Tamaki screeched, showing the picture of Haruhi the twins had uploaded.

She was facing away from the camera, her head turned towards the camera shyly. Her back was bare and she was holding up a sheet to cover her front. The photo stopped at her lower back.

Max quickly glanced at it, and almost cracked a smile at its ridiculousness. Almost.

"Awww, Haru-chan looks cute," Honey smiled.

"Tamaki, that model is too tall for it to be Haruhi. Obviously, they edited Haruhi's face onto a different picture, and not very well," Max commented, rolling her eyes at the fuming Tamaki.

"Hey!" the twins shouted, "Our editing skills are not that bad!"

"Okay, sure," Max smirked.

Max and Haruhi were standing next to each other. The twins sauntered up, placing their arms around the two girls. Hikaru to Haruhi's left and Kaoru Max's right. "We're bored, can we go to one of your guys' houses?"

"No," they answered at the same time, walking away from the doppelgangers.

"Fine, then can we spread rumors about you two being a thing, or something? We need something to do," They said, boredom evident in their tone.

"Uh, I think I speak for both Max and myself when I say, absolutely not," Haruhi stated, a dark undertone poking through her words. The twins shrugged, collapsing onto the nearest couch leaning all over each other.

A creaking noise sounded throughout the clubroom, directing all the hosts' attention to a pair of black doors.

"Were those there before?" Max voiced, not to anyone in particular.

The door slowly opened to reveal a boy hidden beneath a black cloak. He had black hair as well, but Max guessed it was a wig because she could see a few strands of blonde hair peeking out; though, nobody else seemed to notice. His face was covered in shadows, but it was easy too see that he had pale skin. He had a puppet of a cat on his hand.

He cackled, the sound surrounding them in a creepy aura.

"Bored you say?" His voice was mysterious and low. "Well, why not come to the Black Magic Club?"

Max stood up from her lazy position on the couch and approached the dark teen with interest. "This is all pretty cool, if you like that sort of thing. Which, lucky for you, I think it's awesome." She smirked.

"No! Max, don't get mixed up in the curses of Nekozawa!" Tamaki said hysterically, trying to drag her away from Nekozawa.

"Beelzenef and I would be honored to have you in our club!" Nekozawa chuckled, waving around his cat puppet who Max assumed was Beelzenef.

"An intriguing offer, but I'm already a part of one insane club, no need to add another one to the mix," Max responded, smiling softly.

"Suit yourself," He shrugged, that deranged smile never once leaving his face.

All of the sudden, the twins appeared with flashlights pointed right at Nekozawa. "How about some light?!" They shouted.

Nekozawa cringed away. "Pain!" He screeched, herding himself back behind the safety of those black doors that seemed to disappear and reappear out of nowhere.

"That was a little uncalled for," Max mumbled, scowling slightly at the snickering twins.

"Hikaru! Kaoru! Look what you've done! Now we'll all be cursed by Nekozawa," Tamaki shouted, nearly fainting on the spot.

"How do you know his curses actually work?" Haruhi questioned, tilting her head to the side.

"Well…" And Tamaki disappeared into explaining a long story about how he was cursed by Nekozawa. He had stepped on Beelzenef the puppet, then on the day of finals he walked into class to taked his test, but it was in a completely different language! Kyoya then clarified that Tamaki was so paranoid that he walked into beginners Latin and took that final instead of his own.

Max rolled her eyes at his ridiculousness.

"I find that highly unlikely, sempie," Haruhi told Tamaki, though her eyes exposed her amusement.

Later, when club had started, the twins were still bored out of their minds. They decided that they would play the 'Which One is Hikaru?' game. All of their guests were getting it wrong, and they laughed at every attempt.

"Wrong!" They chorused with wide smiles as another one of their guests guessed the wrong twin.

Haruhi and Max were walking by. "That's such a pointless game," Max muttered, Haruhi readily agreeing. They caught the attention of the brothers easily.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Hikaru smirked.

"Yeah, you think you could do better?" Kaoru challenged, his grin mimicking his brother's.

"Well, yeah. It's really not that hard to tell you two apart," Haruhi commented, looking thoughtful for a moment.

"I agree with Haruhi, you two may be twins but you're completely different people," Max added.

"Fine! Then you guess!" They dared, mixing themselves up so that they wouldn't be able to tell. The green hats that they wore covered the part in their hair, not that it would make much of a difference for the two girls.

At the same time, Haruhi and Max pointed to Hikaru saying, "That's him."

"Wrong!" They chorused.

"No, we know we're right," Max grinned, crossing her arms over her chest.

"How?" Kaoru whispered, not intending to voice the thought.

"Well, I'd say that Hikaru's words and actions are more evil than Kaoru's," Haruhi said bluntly, shrugging her shoulders. Max looked at her surprised for how blunt she was, but she did kind of agree. Not that she would admit it, she didn't have to explain herself.

Hikaru's face dropped, but Kaoru began giggling. "I-I'm sorry Hikaru!" Hikaru glared at his brother, who in turn just laughed more.

"Hey! I just don't try to hide it…the real evil lurks within you Kaoru," The giggling stooped and the twins looked at each other seriously.

"You're the one who always comes up with those pranks! I just go along with them," Kaoru shouts. And the fight has begun.

"But you're the one who really gets into them. And stop crawling into my bed at night! Talk about annoying," Hikaru retorted. Max raised a brow at that last remark, but decided not to comment.

"I only do that because you look lonely. I wouldn't choose to sleep in your bed, you idiot!"

"Who're you calling an idiot? You're the one who sucks at math!"

"Oh yeah? Well, you're the one who's failing your foreign language class, you big dummy!"

"The way you grind your teeth is deafening."

"At least I don't toss and turn so much that I fall out of bed!"

"Sicko!"

"Sex pixie!"

"Your momma wears too much make up!" They shouted together. "That's it, we're over!"

'Don't they have the same mom?' Max thought, looking wide-eyed at the twins who stormed out of the clubroom.

[time skip, the next day]

In classroom 1-A, Max took her usual seat next to Haruhi. Hikaru usually sat next to Haruhi and Kaoru next to Max.

"Hey, have you seen the twins at all today, Haruhi?" Max asked, taking out her books.

"No, but I hope they've stopped fighting, it was getting pretty annoying." Maxx nodded her agreement.

Just then, the doors opened to the classroom and Hikaru walked in…with bright pink hair. He took his usual seat next to Haruhi. Students around the room gasped at the older twin's new look.

"Morning Haruhi, Max," Hikaru said conversationally.

"Hikaru?" Haruhi choked.

"What did you do to your hair?" Max laughed, her eyes wide in surprise and delight.

"Well, I couldn't stand people mistaking me for Kaoru," he spat the name, "So I dyed my hair, what do you think?" Max tried to hold in her laughter, rather unsuccessfully.

"Morning Max, Haruhi!" Another voice said from behind them. It was Kaoru…with blue hair. Max lost it, she exploded into a fit of snickers.

Kaoru and Hikaru lightly flushed at her laughs, they were a beautiful sound.

"You were almost late Kaoru, what took you?" Haruhi asked, occasionally glancing at her highly amused best friend. It was rare to see Max laugh like that. There was the occasional chuckle, but she almost never actually laughed.

"Well, I would have been here sooner, but I had the most terrifying dream last night. I dreamt that I had shown up to school with pink hair! Can you believe it? I practically woke up screaming," He chuckled, pulling out his chair next to Max. Just as he was about to sit down, Hikaru's leg shot out, knocking over the chair and having Kaoru land hard on the ground.

Kaoru then leaned over and pushed over Hikaru's chair.

The rest of the class consisted of them throwing stuff at each other, missing every time. Chairs, tables, books; everything was going everywhere. Max assumed they didn't actually want to hit each other, but she wasn't sure, Statistically, they should have hit each other already, but maybe they had just really bad aim.

Because the girls were in between them, they had to dodge a few things. Max even caught a book before it rammed into Haruhi's face. They were slowly becoming more and more irritated by these bickering twins.

As everyone was leaving for lunch, Max and Haruhi had settled into their usual seats for lunch, in the classroom of course. The cafeteria was too crowded for their tastes. Haruhi took out her bento, getting ready to eat her lunch.

The twins interrupted them though. "Oh no, you two are coming to the cafeteria with me," They chorused. They glared at each other, obviously not liking that they were still talking in unison.

"Fine," Hikaru growled, "We'll each take one." He grabbed Max's arm, practically dragging her from the classroom and towards the busy lunchroom. Kaoru did the same to Haruhi.

[in the cafeteria]

The twins were in line to get their food. Haruhi and Max had gotten a table and sat next to each other.

"This is stupid. It was funny at first, but now they're just being ridiculous. They even still talk in unison when they fight!" Max threw up her hands in exasperation. She watched, irritated, as the twins kept trying to order something but they always said the same thing.

Then the rest of the host club appeared, sitting around the table.

"What are my two angelic children doing in here?! Daddy never sees you in the cafeteria!" Tamaki squealed, giggling and smiling like a fool.

"Stop calling me your daughter, sempie," Max said darkly. Haruhi nodded in agreement.

"The twins dragged us here, we usually just have packed lunches in the classroom," Haruhi explained.

Tamaki blushed as he disappeared into his mind theater. Haruhi and Max were both giving him their homemade lunches.

Eventually, the twins got to the table and slumped down in their seats. Hikaru next to Max and Kaoru next to Haruhi.

"Hey, what are you two eating?" Kaoru asked, placing his tray of extravagant food on the table. The girls' mouths watered at the sight, but they shook themselves out of it. They knew they would never be able to afford that kind of food.

"I just have some eggs and leftovers from last night's dinner," Haruhi explained.

"What about you, Max? I don't see your lunch," Hikaru commented, having noticed the empty space on the table in front of her.

"Oh, well I don't always bring a packed lunch. It always depends on what food we have at home. Usually, there's not much," Max said like it was nothing, shrugging her shoulders. That, combined with her always exercising, must be why she weighs so little.

The others looked at her worried for a moment before Hikaru had a sudden idea.

He pushed his tray towards her. "You can have my food. I was trying so hard to get something different from Kaoru that I ended up ordering something I don't even like."

"No, Hikaru. It's all right, I'm not even that hungry anyway," Max brushed off the gesture. She didn't want to be rude, but she really wasn't hungry. Her body has adjusted to lack of food, so she can eat a lot less than the average person and be fine.

Hikaru's face fell, he really figured she should eat something. The others silently agreed.

Kaoru had traded his lunch with Haruhi's bento. She blushed at the wonderful flavors she was tasting. Haruhi was in a daze, hearts dancing in her eyes.

Max waved a hand in front of her face. "I think you broke her," Max chuckled when Haruhi didn't respond.

"Here Max, at least try one bite," Hikaru said, placing a spoon with food on it near her lips. "Say 'ahhh'." Kaoru cut across and ate that bite. Max rolled her eyes and shook her head at the two. She was really getting sick of all of this petty fighting.

All of the sudden, a food fight erupted between the two. They were throwing anything within arms' length, including Honey. Max sighed when she saw Mori and Honey flying through the air; this was getting aggravating.

Max grabbed Haruhi by the back of her collar and dragged her out of the cafeteria.

They were never eating in there again.

[secret club meeting]

Tamaki sighed.

The hosts were all sitting at a table for a little meeting before club hours, minus the Hitachiin twins of course. Kyoya was busy typing some numbers into his calculator, so nothing new there.

"Looking at the numbers, if this situation isn't resolved, I'm afraid we're going to stop offering our 'brotherly love' package," Kyoya informed, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "We're down two loving brothers. Oh, Haruhi?" He got the brunettes attention.

She had been looking out the window.

"I just want you to know, there's no reason for you to feel responsible, even though it was your tactless comment that started this whole feud between the twins in the first place, right?"

Translation: It's your fault and you better feel responsible if we lose any money.

Haruhi's eyes bugged. "What about Max? She could tell them apart too!"

"Yo, Haruhi, don't bring me into this," Max whispered.

"On the contrary, she may be able to tell them apart. However, she said nothing that warranted their fight, unlike you," Kyoya clarified.

"It's weird for Hika-chan and Kao-chan to be fighting like this," Honey said, playing with his Usa-chan. "It's never happened before."

Mori made a noise of agreement as he nodded his head.

"Really? They've never fought before?" Max asked, raising a skeptical brow.

"I've known Hika-chan and Kao-chan since we were in preschool. We weren't in the same year, so I never really got to talk to them. But I remember that the two of them always used to play together," Honey thought aloud.

This was more serious than Max originally thought.

"Yeah, that's true," Tamaki agreed. "I mean, I've only known the twins since they were in middle school…but they definitely stood out. It seemed like they kept everyone at a distance except each other. Believe it or not, they were evn more warped back then. When you stop and think about it, maybe this fight is a good thing for them. Maybe it means that the twins are expanding their horizons a bit. We should just leave them alone and let them work it out."

Max spoke up, staring out the window as she talked. "We could do that and they might think we don't care about them. Or we could help them and they would become angry with us for not leaving them to settle their own problems. Either way we could be risking something. But if this really is their first fight, I believe we may have to interfere. They may not know when enough is enough." She was thinking about the many fights she had with her sister, they would get pretty bad sometimes. Max closed her eyes at the memory, frowning.

"That's some wise words, Max," Haruhi said, smiling at the other girl.

"Yeah well, someone needs to think logically around here, and not just about the money. Besides, I have personal experience with this kind of thing," She stated thoughtfully, the others looking at her curiously. "I just hope they get out of this with their relationship still intact."

[later in club]

The rest of the day, after lunch, the twins had been pulling pranks on each other. And, although it was funny whenever Tamaki would get stuck in them, Max was reaching her limit. She couldn't take their constant bickering anymore.

Club had been cancelled because no one wanted the guests to see the twins this way.

Hikaru, with fists balled at his sides and knuckles white, shouted, "You really piss me off, Kaoru! We may be alike in more ways than one, but I'm tired of being mistaken for you! And, now that I think about it, I hate you!"

For a split second, Kaoru looked surprised. Then, his amber eyes narrowed. "You think I feel any different?! In fact, I bought this!" He pulled out a wooden doll that resembled Beelzenef.

"That's right, Beelzenef the Curse Doll," Kaoru smirked. "I'm going to write your name on the back and you'll be cursed forever!"

Finally, Max and Haruhi had had enough. They stormed over to the two brothers, Haruhi grabbing the doll from Kaoru's hands. Max hit them both over the head, glaring menacing at them.

"Would you guys knock it off! What do you think you're doing? You don't bring something like this into a petty fight. Both of you are at fault here, but what's really sad is that you've brought everyone else around you into your big mess. Now apologize to each other. If you don't make up right now, you're never gonna be allowed to come to either of our houses. Do I make myself clear?!" Haruhi scolded, glaring daggers at the two. Max was just as angry.

The twins looked at them surprised for a moment. Their stunned looks morphed into smirks that rivaled the Cheshire cat.

"So, then what you're saying Haruhi, is that if we make up, we can come over to your or Max's place?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked in unison.

They put an arm over each others' shoulders and stood above the two girls. Haruhi checked the back of the doll, only to see that they had written 'BLANK' on the back.

Hikaru and Kaoru got in one of their brotherly love poses.

"I'm so sorry, Kaoru. Even though I was just following our script, I said such awful things to you. I'm not fit to be your brother," Hikaru choked on a sob.

"Don't say that Hikaru. I was so worried. I couldn't live with myself if I ever thought I had hurt you."

"Kaoru, I'll never let you go again."

"Hikaru!"

Haruhi dropped the wooden doll in shock.

They others began spazzing out.

"You mean, you guys were faking it this whole time?!" Tamaki shouted.

They shrugged. "We didn't have anything else to do," they answered. "We were bored."

"Twins with too much time on their hands," Tamaki whimpered, having fallen to the ground, "Are the devil!" The twins laughed, holding each other.

Nobody noticed Max go over and grab her backpack. Nobody noticed her storm over to the clubroom doors. Nobody realized she was gone until the sound of the door slamming reached their ears.

"Maybe, we should go after her?" Hokaru suggested, looking at the doors worriedly. Kaoru nodded, so they went to go find Max and apologize.

The others soon followed, because of course they were going to eavesdrop.

[with Max]

Eventually, the twins found Max sitting on the school steps with her head in her hands. Her backpack was thrown to the side. She had her knees pulled up to her chest.

The twins sat on either side of her, Hikaru to her left and Kaoru to her right. They placed their arms around her waist.

"What do you want?" Max mumbled through her hands, still not looking at them.

"We wanted to know why you stormed out like that," Hikaru said softly, tucking her loose hair behind her ear. "It was just a joke. We never thought you would react that way."

Max took a deep breath and moved her hands away from her face. They were surprised to see tear stains on her cheeks; it made them feel even worse about what they did.

"I had a sister; I'm sure you didn't know. Kyoya-sempie probably knows, but then again, he knows everything," Max let loose a humorless chuckle.

"Had?" Kaoru questioned, tilting his head to the side as he wiped a tear from her cheek. He momentarily marveled at how smooth her skin was.

"Yeah, well. She died about four years ago," Max said, barely above a whisper. The other hosts, who were hiding behind a pillar, could just hardly make her words. The twins stayed silent, wanting her to finish her story. "She was three years older than me. We would get into fights all the time. Most of them only lasted a few hours, but sometimes they lasted weeks. Now that I think back, they were all pretty stupid.

"Anyway, one day, we had a really bad fight. She stormed out; I assumed she went to her boyfriend's house or something, because she didn't come home that night. I found out the next day that she was hit by a drunk driver as she was crossing the street. She was walking back to our house too. I didn't know if she wanted to apologize, or fight some more; but it didn't really matter. I can't even remember what we were fighting about. The worst part though; the part that I remember so clearly…"

Tears had started to run down her cheeks again, but her voice didn't waver.

"…Just before she stormed out, I screamed 'I HATE YOU, I WISH YOU WOULD JUST DIE.' And she did, I never saw her again after that. Never got to apologize, or say 'I love you'." Max put her head back in her hands in shame.

Hikaru and Kaoru were speechless, they had no idea. Guilt and sorrow racked through their bodies and they had no idea what to do.

Even the others, who had heard the story, were completely shocked. Kyoya knew Max had a dead sister, but he didn't know the specifics; so, yes he was just as shocked.

The twins wrapped their arms protectively around Max's hunched figure and buried their heads into the space between her neck and shoulder. "We're sorry," they whispered as Max's body shook with silent sobs.

And they never fought again.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 - Jungle Pool SOS**

The fragrance of the coconut aroma drifted through the warm air as the light breeze rolled the gentle waves. Haruhi could hear tropical birds chirping around her as she was awoken from her soft sleep. She was still trying to work out if she was still dreaming or not. She could have sworn that, just minutes ago, her and Max were walking out of the school entrance when the final bell rang.

"Haru-chan! Would you like to try some of my coconut milk?!" Honey shouted as he slammed into her back, hugging her tightly. The force was so great, she almost fell over.

Nope, not dreaming.

Looking down, Hatuhi noticed she was wearing a pink bikini that was ruffled on the top. That's when she remembered, the host club had dragged her and Max here. She could recall the twins trying to get Max into a bikini as well, but she flat out refused. Haruhi also remembered Tamaki's reaction to her in this swimsuit; he wanted her to put on a yellow hoodie and shorts to cover up, but she said she didn't want to because it would be too hot.

Haruhi turned to see Kyoya sat at a table with a glass of lemonade in his hand. It had a swirling straw and everything! Super fancy.

Tamaki was lying down on a white beach chair not far from Kyoya, his hands crossed under his head. He looked relaxed, she noted with a smile.

The twins were in a big pool, armed with water pistols. They were attacking each other. Haruhi smiled again as their laughter reached her ears.

Honey sat on the edge of a small pool, his feet dangling in the water. He had a floating in the shape of a pink giraffe with green spots resting around his waist. He was watching Mori swim laps in the pool.

Haruhi briefly wondered where Max was.

"Welcome to the Ohtori group corporation's exclusive members-only swimming resort," Kyoya said, smiling for once in his life. He raised his glass to Haruhi.

Tamaki stood up and pulled Haruhi close to his bare chest with his hand on her shoulder. "It's just the getaway us hosts need, no guests, no responsibilities, just relaxation!" He sighed in content. Upon hearing a tropical bird, he pointed, "Just look! A beautiful southern bird, just what could it be called?"

"It's a rose-ringed parakeet, sempie," A voice said from above them. The hosts looked up towards the trees to see a bunch of branches being pulled to the side, revealing Max sitting up in the branches.

Max sat, leaned up against the trunk and her legs dangling on either side of the branch. She had her sketchbook in hand, the parakeet she spoke of perched on her branch about a foot away.

"How did you know that? You're knowledge of tropical birds is surprising," Kyoya said, raising a brow.

Max shrugged. "It's actual name is 'Psittacla Krameri'! I tend to read when I'm bored."

'She knows Latin too? Very interesting,' Kyoya made a note in his black notebook. For some reason, he didn't know very much about Max, and he really didn't like not knowing. (whoever guesses what that line is from gets a shoutout. Hint: it was used in two different, but very popular British shows)

"That's amazing, Max-chan!" Honey giggled.

"Max! How did you even get up there?!" Haruhi shouted, putting her hands on her hips and glaring at the girl in the trees.

Max looked around like it was obvious. "Well, um, I climbed? What, were expecting something like I flew up here?" She replied, looking at Haruhi as if she was crazy.

"I think you should get down, Max-" Hikaru started.

"-Yeah, it's not safe," Kaoru agreed. They were holding hands and looking up at Max worriedly. They didn't want her to get hurt. Ever since the incident with their fight, Max and the twins had grown closer than any of the other hosts; they had become very protective of her.

Max slumped her shoulders, knowing they wouldn't stop until she was safely on the ground. Sighing, Max stood up on the branch. The parakeet had long ago flown away because of all the noise, and she was having so much fun drawing him too.

She bit down on her pencil and the spine of her sketchbook so she could use her hands to balance herself. Spreading her arms out, Max flipped out of her high perch in the tree. The hosts gasped and held their breath.

Max landed in a crouch, arms still spread out.

Straightening, Max took the notebook and pencil out of her mouth and stared at the surprised and slightly angry looks of the host club.

Hikaru grabbed her shoulders, shaking her. "What were you thinking?! You could have gotten hurt."

"Getting lightheaded, Hikaru stop!" Max struggled to get out of his grip. "You guys seem to forget that I'm an athlete. I've done gymnastics, martial arts, and practically any sport you can name my entire life. That jump?" She pointed to the tree, "Was child's play compared to other stunts I've pulled. There was no way I would have gotten hurt, so calm down. I knew what I was doing."

They all took a deep breath and said, "Fine."

"Good, now let's have some fun," Max smiled, immediately lifting their spirits.

Haruhi just realized that Max wasn't in her uniform. She was wearing a green swim shirt that had short sleeves and black letters on the chest spelling out 'SWIMMERS RULE'. She also wore black swim trunks that the twins couldn't stand, but she couldn't be talked out of wearing them. She liked to be covered, that's all there was to it.

"You look nice, Max," Haruhi commented.

"Huh? Oh, thanks Haruhi. The twins tried to get me into a bikini but I wouldn't let them. They just aren't all that comfortable, I feel too exposed. But, you look nice in yours Haruhi," Max grinned.

Everyone basically went back to what they were doing before.

Max went over to the high diving boards.

"Uhhh…careful," Mori said to her as she was climbing the latter. She simply saluted him with a small smile. She was going to have fun.

Max wasn't going to do any boring dive, no she was going to make it interesting. Running forward, she jumped and did two front flips before finally making contact with the water. Mori gasped, that was hot.

She didn't come up for air until she reached him at the edge of the pool. Finally surfacing, she chuckled at Mori's reaction. She loved it when she surprised people like that.

He gave her a hand, lifting her out of the pool.

"Impressive," was all he said before walking away.

Max shrugged and went to the bar to get a water bottle. She basically only ever drank water and coffee.

"That was quite the dive you just did." Max looked over to see Kyoya sat a few feet from where she was leaning against the counter.

"Thanks," She replied.

Just then, Max was drenched in water due to being shot by one of the twins. She looked down at her wet clothes and then towards the two culprits, a mischievous smirk playing on her lips.

"Oh, you're on!" She hollered. "Kyoya-sempie!" He tossed her two water guns that had appeared out of nowhere, like so many other things, she easily caught them. She aimed at the twins.

"Traitor!" The twins pointed to the Shadow King.

Kyoya merely shrugged, smirking into his drink. He was going to enjoy watching this.

Eventually, all of the hosts excluding Kyoya and Haruhi were in on the war. Those two sat at Kyoya's table, chatting.

The participants were all armed with pistols and water balloons.

Max was hidden behind a couple of trees. At first it was every man for himself, but somehow it turned into all of them against her! She didn't know how it happened, but she wasn't complaining. Not a single one of them has hit her since that first time when she wasn't looking.

As she looked around, Max noticed that the twins had disappeared. Tamaki, who was behind a chair refilling his water gun, was now hidden in some bushes.

Honey was seated in the open, with a pile of water balloons next to him. He hadn't moved at all, but his aim was so good that he didn't have to. The only person he couldn't hit was Max, she was just so fast!

Mori was hidden behind another tree, not far from Max. She couldn't see him, he knew. He smiled at the thought of jumping out and dousing her in water.

Max was about to make her move, but Mori jumped out armed with two water pistols. He shot at her repeatedly, but she seemed able to dodge every blast of water. She chucked a water balloon at him, hitting him square in the face. She chuckled as his surprised face as she found a new hiding spot behind a few surf boards.

She was about to jump out and soak the unsuspecting Honey, who had his back to her, when she was suddenly being blasted from behind.

"Ahh!" She squeaked, turning around to find the twins that had previously disappeared. Max jumped out from her hiding spot as they continued to shoot water at her.

The other three participants quickly joined in soaking Max. Honey throwing water balloons while the rest shot at her with their water guns. Max was laughing uncontrollably, trying and failing to shield herself from their attacks.

"Okay, okay! I give up!" She yielded between laughs. Eventually the onslaught of water stopped and Max tried to control her breathing from laughing so hard.

"We won!" The twins cheered, dancing around in a circle.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Technically, you all got me so there's no single winner," She smirked, edging them on. They stopped dancing and looked around at the other three.

"That's true," They said in unison. Aiming their guns at Tamaki, they began trying to get him wet.

Max chuckled at their antics. "Well, I'm going for a swim. Would you two like to join me?" She looked at the two third years. Honey nodded enthusiastically, while Mori just shook his head. He wanted to relax for a minute.

Max shrugged. "Suit yourself, c'mon Honey-sempie."

They got into the current pool. Max, since she's in good shape, was able to keep up with the current as she swam against it. Honey sat on her back as she swam. It helped her endurance, and he was just so cute so she couldn't deny him when he asked.

All of the sudden, there was a deep rumbling sound and a large wave appeared above them.

"Holy shit," Max whispered, staring wide-eyed at the wave.

"Mitsukuni!"

"Max!"

The two teens were washed away by the current, Honey's floaty flying off in the process.

Water began to fill Max's lungs as she was pulled further into the current without being able to come up for air. Eventually, she found herself in a calm pool where she immediately got out and onto the deck.

Max coughed up some water and restored her breathing. Looking around, she noticed that she was all alone.

But, wasn't Honey in the current pool with her when the wave hit? "Honey-sempie!" Max shouted, fearing he may have drowned. "Honey-sempie!"

"Maybe we just got separated in all of the commotion; yeah, that makes sense. I'm sure Honey-sempie is fine," Max tried to reassure herself.

Standing up, Max became momentarily lightheaded. Placing a hand on her forehead, she steadied herself. She needed to figure out where she was and which way was the best to go.

Picking a random direction, she set off; only to run into a bunch of roaming crocodiles. Max just calmly turned around and headed in a different direction.

"Note to self: Yell at Kyoya-sempie for letting the crocodiles roam free in a resort," Max growled to herself, crossing her arms.

Then, it started to rain.

Holding out her hand, Max mumbled a quick, "Perfect" before strolling into the jungle. There wasn't much she could do at this point, unless she wanted to go hang with the crocs; which, oddly enough, did not sound very pleasant.

[with the hosts]

"Okay, Kyoya! Which way?" Tamaki said glancing around them for any sign of their lost friends. They were standing under a hut so they could be shielded from the rain.

The twins were off to the side, clutching each other's hands like a lifeline as their eyes scanned their surroundings. They were beyond worried about Max. It didn't help when they saw that the crocodiles walked around freely.

Haruhi stood next to Mori. Though his face looked calm, she could see the concern in his eyes.

"We'll find them, Mori-sempie. Don't worry," She smiled her natural smile.

He ruffled her hair in appreciation but her words did nothing to calm his anxious heart. As the rain died down, Mori immediately went in search of his cousin; Haruhi followed him, not wanting him to go off alone.

Kyoya snapped his phone shut. "Okay, so I told my police force that we have two missing guests and they should find them soon. They can do a better job than we can."

"Hey, where did Mori and Haruhi go?" Tamaki asked, spinning around in search of his 'daughter'.

"I probably should have told them that there were other people here…oh well," Kyoya shrugged. They set off in search of their friends.

[back with Max]

"Well, the rain finally stopped. That's a good sign, I hope," Max mumbled, rubbing her arms as goose bumps began to surface. It may have stopped raining, but she was still wet.

Max could feel her feet getting all scraped up from the rocks and dirt she was walking on, but she didn't really pay much attention to that. All she wanted was to find the host and get a blanket because she was freezing.

She passed tree after tree, not really knowing where she was going.

Then she heard it, the hosts. Not too far from her either. Max sprinted in that direction.

[with the hosts]

"Honey-sempie! I'm so glad you're okay!" Haruhi said, giving him a hug. He giggled at her.

"I'm fine, Haru-chan. Honest," he replied, jumping onto Mori's back. "Were you lonely while I was gone, Takashi?"

Mori glanced at Haruhi. "No."

"Haruhi!" Tamaki screeched, scooping up the unsuspecting girl in a bone-crushing hug.

"Mori-sempie!" Haruhi choked out.

He reacted immediately, pulling Haruhi from the blonde's grasp and placing her on the ground gently; patting her head like he always does.

"I'm glad to see everyone is okay. Now, I have to deal with the imbeciles who tried to attack the guests at this resort," Kyoya said darkly, turning to his men that were all bowing to Honey.

Honey had shown up when they were about to attack Mori and Haruhi. He beat the living hell out of them and they were now all apologizing.

"Wait-" Hikaru started.

"-Where's Max?" Kaoru finished, noticing that the freckled girl is nowhere to be seen.

"I thought she was with you guys?" Honey said, tears pooling in his eyes at the thought of their lost friend.

"We thought she was with you, she was washed away in the current pool as well," Tamaki said, glancing around nervously.

"Well, if she's not with us and she's not with Honey-sempie, then where's Max?" Haruhi asked.

"Yes, where is she indeed?" A voice said from above them.

"Max!" Everyone shouted.

She jumped down, landing in between the twins. They immediately put their arms around her. "I was just walking around, trying to find Honey-sempie when I heard you guys. What happened here?"

Max just noticed all of the police officers who were bowing to Honey.

"Well, I had sent out a search party to find you guys," Kyoya explained, "but, having forgotten to tell them that there were others here, they thought that Mori-sempie was suspicious and were preparing to attack. Then, Honey-sempie showed up and basically took out all the officers. Upon realizing who Hone-sempie was, they're trying to apologize."

Max raised a brow. "That's awesome."

"I still don't get it, why was Honey-sempie able to do all that?" Haruhi cocker her head to the side in confusion.

"You mean you don't know?" The twins said in unison, removing their arms from Max.

She grabbed them and wrapped herself back up. "I'm cold and you're warm, don't let go," she practically ordered. She was cold, they realized. So, they snuggled closer to her, hiding their blushes as they did so.

Some of the others looked at them with jealousy.

"Anyway," Tamaki started, "The Haninozuka family is famous for being masters in all forms of martial arts, as is the Morinozuka family. They are cousins after all. And the Haninozuka family also trains many of Japan's military forces; they had created their own fighting style years ago."

"Wow, really?" Haruhi said skeptically, looking at the sweet face of Honey with slight apprehension.

"I can't believe you didn't know that, Haruhi. Even I knew it. Then again, I did study both families' fighting technique for years," Max stated as if it was no big deal.

"Really, Max-chan?" Honey asked, his eyes hopeful and a bright smile showing all of his pearly white teeth.

"Well, yeah. Like I said earlier, I've spent most of my life devoted to two things; art and athletics. Martial arts was one of many things I focused on and you guys are famous for being incredible martial arts champions," Max explained, shrugging her shoulders.

"Maybe we should spar sometime!" Honey said cheerfully.

Max smiled. "I'd like that, though I'm sure I'm nowhere near as talented as you."

"So, Haruhi, what did you think of this little adventure?" Tamaki asked.

"Honestly, this isn't really my idea of a vacation. I think next time we should go to the beach," She shrugged, walking away.

The others looked at her, ideas forming in their head; except for Max of course, she was just welcoming the heat the twins provided for her, not noticing the obvious blushes on their cheeks.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7 - The Sun, The Sea, and The Host Club**

Haruhi sat on a beach blanket under an umbrella surrounded by a few of her guests. She was relishing the cool breeze that blew through the air.

She should have known that Kyoya would turn this trip into a business opportunity. And, because they had invited their guests, Haruhi couldn't wear a regular girl's bathing suit; much to Tamaki's dismay. Haruhi didn't care much either way.

Instead Haruhi wore a pair of tan cargo shorts and a dark blue t-shirt. She was relaxing with her guests; she wasn't really in the mood to go swimming, especially not at the risk of revealing her gender.

The others were scattered across the beach with their guests doing lord knows what.

"It was so sweet of you and the rest of the Host Club to invite all of us to the beach with you," One of Haruhi's guests, dressed in a white bikini, said sweetly.

"Yeah, well, I think it was nice of Nekozawa-sempie to allow us to use his beach house for the occasion. It's a shame he couldn't join us," Haruhi replied, smiling her natural smile. The girls blushed.

Kyoya had planned this so the host club and their guests were staying the night at the beach and he was able to make quite the profit. There was no way he'd come to the beach otherwise.

Haruhi's guests had run off to go swimming.

Max appeared behind Haruhi. "Figures the Shadow King would turn a nice vacation into an opportunity for profit. He'll never change, will he?" She chuckled, leaning up against the pole of the umbrella Haruhi was sitting under.

Haruhi's eyes bugged when she saw Max.

"Max?! Showing a bit more skin than at the resort, aren't we?" She almost shouted, completely astonished at what she was seeing. Max shrugged her shoulders.

She was wearing a bikini the twins had gotten for her. It consisted of little black shorts and a white, halter bikini top that had a black swirl design on the left cup. It contrasted well with her pale, freckled skin and complemented her figure quite nicely. Her silver infinity necklace was clasped around her neck; she never seemed to take it off. Haruhi briefly wondered why.

But that's not why Haruhi was surprised, oh no. Well, not entirely.

The swim suit completely revealed Max's stomach, not only showing how fit she was because of her six pack, but Max had a tattoo! The tattoo was of a quote that Haruhi had never seen before. It said "True Strength Is Nothing More Than How Well You Hide The Pain". The letters were black and in cursive, looking like a stanza to a poem traveling from just below her chest to the top of her hip. There were also two butterflies, one purple and the other blue, that looked as though they were flying through the words.

"Kyoya-sempie said that since I was going to be having guests here too then I had to dress for the part. Translation: wear a bikini so we get more money," Max laughed. The guys really were ridiculous.

"I didn't know you had a tattoo though," Haruhi said, still staring at the intricate designs of the letters.

Max shrugged again, crossing her arms. "Yeah, I've had it for about two years now. Technically I'm not the proper age for one, but you'd be surprised what you can do with a fake ID."

"Max!"

"I'm kidding Haruhi! Mostly," Max mumbled, looking out at the ocean. Her eyes were distant and glazed over, as if she was replaying memories in her mind.

"Tamaki's going to have a fit, you know," Haruhi commented, standing up from her lax position on the purple towel.

"So, nothing new there," Max smirked, looking over at Haruhi mischievously.

Haruhi giggled in response. "But seriously, what made you want to get a tattoo? I heard they were ridiculously painful," Haruhi shuddered. She never responded well to pain.

"It's not that painful, once you get past the blood and sting of the needle," She responded, completely unfazed at the mention of blood.

Haruhi sweatdropped. "Blood?"

"Well, yeah. Honestly, Haruhi, I thought you were smarter than this. They basically carve into your skin with a sharp needle, of course there's blood. And the pain also varies depending on the place you get the tattoo," She explained, motioning to her left side where the black ink stained her skin.

"Okay, yeah. That makes sense," Haruhi replied, trying to cover up how uncomfortable she was with the subject of blood. Haruhi's had paper cuts and stuff, but she was never hurt enough to see more than a few drops of her own blood and even that made her uneasy.

"I'm going for a walk, have fun relaxing Haruhi!" Max waved dismissively as she walked away from the beach towel.

Haruhi waved back even though she knew Max couldn't see her.

Looking around, Max noticed that all of the hosts were in separate groups with their guests, similar to how club works back at school.

She sighed, shaking her head, when she saw all of the girls lined up to have a few minutes alone with Tamaki on a rock in the ocean. Honestly, that boy just kept getting more and more dramatic. The girls were squealing none stop as they waited for their turn.

Mori and Honey were swimming with their guests. They were all splashing around and smiling brightly, with the exception of Mori who just kind of stood off to the side watching his cousin.

Kyoya was being his usual isolated self and was sitting on a towel not far from Haruhi with his notebook in hand. Max shook her head at him; he should really loosen up.

Max smiled as she saw the twins playing volleyball. She considered them her best friends, next to Haruhi. She wasn't used to having people who cared for her and looked out for her like the hosts did; and it felt nice.

One of the twins dropped the volleyball and it was rolling away, so they were chasing after it. They were practically prancing as Kaoru tried to get the ball and Hikaru tried to catch Kaoru.

"Wait Kaoru!" Hikaru giggled.

"It's not me! The ball is getting away!" Kaoru shouted back, smiling and giggling.

Max broke into fits of snickers when she saw them fall. Kaoru had stopped when he saw Max in her swimsuit, causing Hikaru to run into him and them to crash to the ground in a pile of arms and legs.

"I didn't think she'd actually wear it!" Kaoru whispered to Hikaru. They had only gotten the swim suit for her as a joke, thinking she wouldn't wear it in a million years.

"Is that a tattoo?!" Hikaru whisper/yelled back, his eyes bugging out of his head. She just got like 100 times hotter to them. And it also did not escape their notice that she was incredibly fit.

They gulped, trying to fight down their blushes.

"Max! I suggest you attend to your guests. They've been waiting for you!" Kyoya informed, momentarily glancing up from his notebook to glare at her only to almost choke on his lemonade when he saw her. He hid his blush behind his clipboard.

"Of course," Max mock-saluted, walking over towards her group of guest which included three guys from class-D.

Her guests weren't allowed to stay the night since they were all guys and they didn't get permission from their parents, so they had less time to spend with Max than they would have liked.

The twins watched her walk away with slight jealousy in their hearts; they didn't like the idea of her spending time with other guys.

Eventually, Max spotted her guests sat on some rocks further up the beach.

[with Max's guests]

"Okay, what's the plan?" One of them asked enthusiastically. He had dirty blonde hair and gray eyes. He had a square jaw and muscular arms. He was wearing green swim trunks.

"Maybe we should go get ice cream with her or something?" One suggested. He had shaggy black hair and sky blue yes. He was shorter and slimmer than the others. He wore dark blue swim trunks.

"You idiot! We should ask her if she wants to go swimming!" A third one hissed. He had red hair that went down to the nape of his neck and light brown eyes. He wore black swim trunks.

The first one looked at the other two disappointed. "No, we should ask her if she wants to play a game of volleyball." The others looked at him like he was crazy.

"Why would we do that? That just sounds stupid," The one in blue trunks commented, scrunching his nose in distaste.

"No, think about it. It involves jumping, and Max will be in a swimsuit, won't she?" He left them to figure out the rest in their minds.

They blushed. "Okay, volleyball it is," they synchronized, wiping the blood that had dripped down their noses.

"Volleyball? I'm game!" The boys all shot around to see Max standing at the base of the rocks, smirking up at them with her arms crossed and…in a bikini and…with a hot tattoo.

They all fell over with bloody noses.

"Oh, grow up!" Max sighed, shaking her head again. "Are we going to play or not?" She asked, raising a brow and holding a volleyball that had appeared out of nowhere.

They all landed in front of her on their knees, their hands held out as if in prayer. "Thank you!" They said, hearts in their eyes.

Max rolled her eyes, "Whatever."

She walked away, three blushing upperclassmen following closely behind her.

[time skip]

Max collapsed next to Haruhi on her beach towel, trying to catch her breath after the game of volleyball. She had insisted three against one, not only wanting to prove her skills but she wanted to get a nice workout out of it.

What Max hadn't expected was for everyone in the beach to stop and watch her! It definitely put some pressure on her.

Not to mention the distraction of Tamaki freaking out over his 'daughter' wearing a bikini and having a tattoo. Max nearly dropped the ball during a serve because he screamed so loudly.

Grabbing a water bottle that was conveniently on the towel next to her, she gulped it down. A few drops escaped and rolled down her neck and chest; she seemed not to notice. After she had steadied her breathing, Max noticed that a group of girls had accumulated around her, looking at her with admiration.

Max looked around awkwardly at all of their smiling faces.

"Max, that was amazing!"

"Yeah, how did you do that?! You beat all three of them!"

"Well, it's about time us girls started showing those boys that they aren't the best at everything," She replied, a devilish grin on her face.

Two pairs of arms snaked around her waist. "Oh yeah? Well, let's see if you're better at swimming than us," A devious voice whispered in her ear.

Max didn't even have time to react as she was lifted off the ground. Kaoru had her by her armpits and Hikaru had her by her ankles.

"Don't you dare!" Max yelled, squirming in their grip

"Oh, we dare!" Hikaru shouted, running towards the big, blue ocean.

Next thing Max knew, she was plunged into the water as waves crashed around her. She struggled for a second, and then surfaced with a large intake of breath.

The sun glistened on her wet skin and her long hair stuck to her figure. Walking by the laughing twins, Max flipped them off then headed towards Haruhi and her guests.

Haruhi handed the soaking girl a towel. She knew that Max was only really angry whenever she was quiet and calm about a situation, similar to the way she was now. "Oh, you guys are definitely going to pay," Haruhi warned, glancing at the now pale twins. They shared a look and slowly began to back away.

Max, though she had a temper, was rarely ever truly mad. But when she was, you did not want to mess with her.

One time, a guy in the hall had grabbed her ass. She spun around so fast, hardly anyone could see her. She didn't scream or scold the guy, not like most people would expect. Max had an eerily calm demeanor as she pulled him down by the collar and kneed him in the face; breaking his nose in the process. She walked away as if nothing happened, even though there was a blood stain on the knee of her slacks.

The other hosts had been there too; that's when they knew not to mess with her. Max could be just as scary, if not scarier, than the Shadow King or even Honey after a nap.

As Max moved her hair so she could dry it better, one of Haruhi's guests noticed a bunch of scars that were all over Max's back. They weren't very long, but there were a lot of them and they were scattered around randomly.

"Max? Where did you get all those scars on your back?" She asked innocently. Max didn't tense or avoid the question; she seemed as relaxed as ever.

She briefly looked at her back. "Oh, these?" The girl nodded. The others had gathered, looking at her curiously. "They're really not that big a deal. I had fallen down a flight of stairs when I was like eight or something and I landed on a broken vase. There were all different pieces of broken glass lodged in my back. I was a really reckless and idiotic kid; it was my own fault," She explained, still drying her hair.

"Seriously?" Hikaru raised a brow. She just kept surprising them.

Max chuckled. "Yeah, honestly I was pretty thoughtless of my own wellbeing. One time, I rode my skateboard down a huge hill and crashed, I shattered my knee in the process. The doctors had to replace the crushed bone with a piece of metal. Airport security is such a bother now." She tried to joke, though no one seemed to find it all that funny.

Everyone was looking at her, surprised.

"What? None of you have ever broken a bone before?" Max asked incredulously.

"Takashi and I have when we first started our training! We weren't very skilled in the beginning and we got hurt a lot but nothing ever like that," Honey added, Mori nodding in agreement.

"Seriously?" Max's eyes were wide as she looked at everyone. They all shook their heads. "Wow, I've broken so many bones I've lost count. I can't believe none of you have ever been hurt like that."

"You've broken that many?!" Kaoru questioned, astounded.

"Well, yeah. Like I said, I was a messed up kid. The emergency room was practically a second home to me. Besides, being an athlete; injury is very common," Max shrugged as if it was nothing. "C'mon, don't let my dysfunctional childhood ruin your fun! Go swim, or do something!"

That brought everybody's spirits up and they all went out to swim.

Kyoya stood next to Max, whose smile had vanished after everyone dispersed. He noticed that as she looked out at the other s having fun, her expression seemed almost sad.

"I broke my wrist in third grade," Kyoya stated.

Max's head whipped around to face him. He winked at her; she smiled at him.

The twins noticed this exchange and scowled at the Shadow King, not liking how friendly the two were getting.

Haruhi and Max had gone for a walk down the beach. They stumbled upon Honey and Mori collecting shellfish on the beach.

"I didn't even think they had shellfish on this beach," Haruhi murmured. Her mouth began to water when she saw all of the shellfish Honey had already gathered in a small bucket. "But, they'll make for a great dinner tonight!" Haruhi immediately began helping him collect more of the delicious crabs.

Max raised an eyebrow. She heard a noise coming from behind a pile of rocks. Climbing up, she looked over to see Kyoya and a bunch of his bodyguards unloading shellfish from a big, black truck.

"They wanted to apologize to Honey-sempie for what happened at the resort last week," Kyoya stated, not looking up from his clipboard.

Max rolled her eyes; she seemed to be doing that a lot lately. "Whatever," and she climbed back down.

After a whole situation where Tamaki got scared by a centipede that was on a crab he was holding and Haruhi tossing it away with little to no reaction, the hosts decided to have a contest to figure out what Max and Haruh's fears were. The prize was pictures of Haruhi from middle school.

"What about if someone guesses Max-chan's fear?" Honey asked innocently.

"That alone will be challenge enough, and I couldn't find any pictures of her from middle school. All her records have been practically wiped out. I doubt anyone will even be able to find her fear anyway; if she even has one, that is," Kyoya responded, pushing up his glasses.

"C'mon, she's gotta be afraid of something," Hikaru said, leaning up against his brother.

"Not necessarily. I mean, has anyone ever seen her show any sign of fear before?" Tamaki asked, placing his hand on his chin in thought.

As they pondered that, they realized that it was true. No one had ever seen Max show any sign of fear. Maybe she really wasn't afraid of anything.

They tested ghosts, sharp objects, dark and small spaces, snakes, and heights. Nothing seemed to even faze Haruhi, let alone terrify her. They were beginning to think that she was just as fearless as Max.

Currently, Max was sitting on a towel with her sketchbook and pastels. Her guests had left and it was now sunset; the perfect moment to capture on paper. Haruhi had decided to sit next to her, wanting to watch her draw. Max looked calm and content with a small smile on her face. It made her seem less intimidating and Haruhi thought the look suited her.

"Look up here Haruhi!" One of Haruhi's guests called. Both Max and Haruhi looked up to see a couple of her guests on a cliff that overlooked the ocean.

"It's so nice up here and look at this view!" One sighed as she looked at the sunset.

"Be careful! It's dangerous up there!" Haruhi called back, worry obviously shown in her eyes.

They watched for a moment longer before a couple of male voices reached their ears followed by the screams of the girls. Haruhi bolted towards the cliff.

"Haruhi!" Max shouted, running after her.

By the time Max had caught up to Haruhi, she saw the brunette had thrown her bucket of shellfish at one, gaining their attention.

"She said leave her alone, or can't you Neanderthals understand anything," Haruhi growled.

"Why you little punk!" The guy yelled, charging at Haruhi.

Max maneuvered around them knowing Haruhi could handle herself for the moment. She went to the guy who was holding the two girls. She punched him in the face, smiling at the satisfying crack the sounded after her fist made contact.

Max turned to the girls while the guy was momentarily distracted. "Go! Get Tamaki-sempie and the others!" They nodded, sprinting down the slope of the cliff. Max sighed in relief; at least they got away.

"You bitch!" The guy she had hit screamed, grabbing her arms from behind.

Max struggled in his tight grip, already knowing she'd have bruises there. "Let go! You're not allowed here; this is a private beach."

"So? What are you going to do about it?" He chuckled, his breath reeking of alcohol as it hit the back of her neck. Max shuddered at the uncomfortable yet familiar feeling. She shook her head, ridding herself of those unpleasant memories; she had left those behind.

Max looked up to see Haruhi struggling in the grasp of the other guy as he held her over the edge of the cliff.

"I hope you can swim," He smirked, ready to let go.

"Haruhi!" Max screamed. She head butted the guy behind her, twisting out of his grip and then kicking him in the groin. He was down for the count. Max ran up and kicked the other guy in the face just as he let Haruhi go.

The guy fell to the ground, unconscious from the force of the kick.

It all seemed to happen in slow motion.

Max collapsed onto her hands and knees and reached out her arm as Haruhi was falling. She just barely grabbed Haruhi's hand.

The crack of Max's shoulder and her pained cry as her head hit the rock of the cliff from the force went unnoticed over the loud yell of Tamaki.

"Haruhi!" He screamed. Looking over the edge of the rock, Haruhi was hanging there in the tight grip of Max's hand. Tamaki sighed in relief.

He reached down and pulled Haruhi from Max's grasp, hauling her body onto the cliff. As they stood, Max sat hunched on the rock. She had her right knee pulled up to her chest and her left knee flat on the ground. Her breathing was a little irregular as she clutched her aching left shoulder.

No one seemed to notice her.

The guys had gone after Kyoya asked them to leave, using one of his infamous death glares to scare them off. Of course, he got their ID's so they could press charges.

Haruhi was slightly shaking, but otherwise she seemed fine.

"Kyoya, be sure to call a doctor," Tamaki said, his hair casting shadows over his eyes. His voice was eerily calm.

"I already did, she should be here soon," Kyoya informed.

"I'm fine you guys, I don't need a doctor," Haruhi groaned, still having not noticed her friend in pain on the ground.

"What were you thinking?!" Tamaki asked darkly, grabbing her shoulders. "You know, you're not like Honey-sempie. You're not a martial arts master. Why did you confront them? What made you think you would stand a chance?! You, against two boys."

Everyone was watching their argument.

"But, but it doesn't matter that they're boys and I'm a girl. I was there I had to do something. And Max was there with me. I wasn't alone and she knows how to fight. There wasn't any time to think-"

"Haruhi," A strained and calm voice said. Everyone looked over to see Max had spoken. She was still hunched over, her long hair covering her face in shadows.

The twins were immediately at her sides. Kaoru slowly lifted her chin, gasping at what he saw.

A drop of blood ran down Max's left temple from a gash that was on her forehead. Looking at her shoulder, it was easy to tell it had been dislocated, or at least broken.

"Oh my god," Haruhi whispered.

"I get why you did it," Max said in between breaths, trying to get past the pain she was feeling. "But you need to understand your limits. You should have called for help, not try to take on two drunk guys when you don't even know how to fight." There was no malice in her words; however, she was frowning at Haruhi and her eyes were slightly narrowed.

"Max, I-"

"Don't you get it, Haruhi! Don't forget, you're a girl! What would have happened if Max hadn't been there?!" Tamaki shouted, anger giving way to his worry for Max.

"Look," Haruhi started, irritated. She seemed to have forgotten her best friend was hurt. "I'm sorry you had to come and save me, sempie. But, I don't understand why you're so mad at me right now! I don't think I did anything wrong!"

"You don't think so?!" Tamaki asked. He let go of her shoulders and walked past her. "Fine, whatever you say. But I'm not speaking to you until you can admit you were wrong!"

[time skip]

Max, Kyoya, Hikaru, Kaoru, and Honey were all sitting around a large dining table for dinner. Mori had gone to get Haruhi and nobody knew where Tamaki was, but they knew he was still angry.

A doctor had come and attended to Max's injuries. She reset Max's shoulder and wrapped it in bandages across her chest and about halfway down her bicep. They were supposed to keep the bone in place. And there was a bandage covering the gash on her forehead. It had finally stopped bleeding when they got back to the mansion from the beach.

Max was seated in between the twins. They had scooted their chairs closer to her and had rested their arms across the back of her chair, not wanted to hurt her more if they put their arms on her shoulders. She was leaning her head against Kaoru.

Everyone was in nightclothes. Max wore a pair of red and black plaid boxer shorts and a black tank top. She had her hair in the low ponytail, some loose strands framing her face.

They were all just chatting when Mori came in with Haruhi.

Max nearly choked on her water when she saw the brunette girl in a pink night gown. She tried not to comment, looking away when Haruhi tried to meet her eye.

"You look cute, Haru-chan," Honey said softly.

"Thanks, Honey-sempie," She smiled at him. "My dad packed it for me. He repacked my entire suitcase when I wasn't looking. He's always trying to get me to wear stuff like this."

She sat down across from Max.

Mori went into the kitchen to cook the crab and other shellfish they collected today. Just as the food was done, Tamaki came in and sat next to Haruhi since it was basically the only seat open. He blushed lightly when he saw her in the nightgown.

Silence.

"Well, this uncomfortable," Hokaru said, trying to fill the silence. Haruhi and Tamaki still weren't talking to each other.

"Yeah, kinda awkward," Kaoru agreed.

Haruhi was looking at Max, trying to at least get the girl to look at her. She wasn't very successful.

"Max-" Haruhi tried.

"You know what," Max interrupted, still not looking at Haruhi. "I'm not very hungry. I think I'll just go to bed." With that said, Max pushed out her chair and walked right out of the dining room.

The others looked at her as she departed with sad eyes.

Haruhi was now incredibly frustrated, both with Max and herself. She knew she had no right to be mad at Max, but she was trying to apologize and Max just kept blowing her off.

Mori came in with the food.

"Dig in Haru-chan!" Honey said, trying to lift her spirits.

Haruhi's mouth watered, momentarily forgetting about her problem with Max. She inhaled the crabs like there was no tomorrow.

"Don't you think you should slow down?" Tamaki asked quietly, slightly disgusted at the way she was eating. He had been tense the whole time, waiting for her to apologize to him.

"I thought you weren't talking to me," Haruhi replied rudely.

Tamaki stormed out of the dining room, Kyoya not far behind him. Haruhi just didn't understand what she had done wrong.

"That was harsh," Hikaru commented. They were all looking at Haruhi as she finally stopped eating and seemed to calm down slightly.

"Haru-chan, I don't think you realize how worried everyone was today. For you and Max-chan," Honey said slowly, hoping to get his point across.

"I don't understand why you were worried though. I couldn't just ignore that those girls were in trouble, and Max didn't have to follow me," Haruhi mumbled, looking down at her hands in her lap.

"Well, it's because we all care about you. Honestly, you were being pretty reckless," Kaoru added, not really meeting Haruhi's eye.

"You, you care?" Haruhi stuttered, looking around at them wide-eyed.

They all nodded.

"I'm sorry guys, I didn't realize. I shouldn't have been so careless," Haruhi said truthfully.

"It's okay, Haru-chan!"

"But, you should really go apologize to boss, and Max," Hikaru told her, smiling softly.

"Yeah," but then Haruhi's stomach made a weird noise. "I think I ate too much," She mumbled, putting one hand over her mouth and the other on her stomach.

They rushed her to the nearest bathroom.

[time skip]

Max was sitting on the windowsill in her room, looking out at the night. The sound of the rain hitting the glass of the window and the occasional burst of thunder calmed her tense muscles.

She had had a panic attack, something she hasn't had in over a year.

Nobody knows about them, not even her mom. Max has always been rather independent and she doesn't like to burden others with her problems. There's no reason for anyone to know about her anxieties.

Max took deep breaths, trying to settle her racing heart.

There was a knock on her door. Max got up and slowly walked towards it, not really wanting to talk to anybody but knowing that if she didn't answer it whoever was there would just keep knocking.

Placing her hand on the cool metal of the doorknob, Max opened the door.

"Haruhi, do you need something?" Max raised a brow. She had heard from down the hall about how Tamaki had blindfolded her and put earplugs in her ears. Max would have to have a word with him later.

"Well, no," Haruhi rubbed the back of her neck nervously. "Actually, yeah. I needed to tell you that I'm sorry. I know you were just trying to help and that you were worried. I never wanted you to get hurt." Her eyes lingered on the bandages that Max had.

"I'm not mad at you Haruhi," Max said, causing Haruhi to look up at her in surprise. "Yes, I was worried about you. What you did was really reckless, but you're not hurt so it doesn't really matter now; as long as you call for help next time. And I get hurt all the time, it's no big deal. This isn't the first time I've dislocated my shoulder and it won't be the last. This whole experience," She paused, debating whether or not she should say anything. Haruhi looked at her expectantly.

"This whole experience just brought up some painful memories that I'd rather not remember. I'm not mad, so there was no need for you to apologize," Max finished, giving Haruhi a small smile. Haruhi wondered what memories she was talking about, but decided not to push it.

Haruhi sighed in relief, only to jump in fear when thunder boomed in the background.

Max raised a brow. "Are you…afraid of thunder?"

Haruhi hesitantly nodded, hugging herself. Max opened her door wider, allowing Haruhi into her room. She went over to her nightstand and picked up her iPod.

Max led Haruhi to her bed and told her to get under the sheets. She put her big headphones over Haruhi's ears and played some music. Most of her music was heavy metal and rock, which didn't surprise Haruhi at all. But Max found a track that was more soothing than the pounding of drums and screeching of a guitar.

Getting into bed next to Haruhi, Max lifted the sheet and covered both of them so that they would be enclosed in darkness.

"Go to sleep," Max whispered, laying on her side that wasn't wrapped in bandages. They both closed their eyes and sleep soon claimed them; Max hoping that nightmares wouldn't bother her tonight.

[time skip]

The next day, all of the hosts were getting ready to leave.

Max was sitting in between the twins as usual. Haruhi was across from her in the limo. Honey and Mori were next to Haruhi.

Kyoya was just getting in when he closed the door on Tamaki.

"I can't believe I almost let you get away with that last night, sempie," Haruhi mumbled. "Well now I know what S&M is."

"No! It wasn't like that!" Tamaki shouted, chasing after the car as it drove away.

"Should we be worried about him?" Max said, pointing behind them at the running Tamaki.

"Only if he catches us," Kyoya smirked.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8 - A Challenge from Lobelia Academy**

Haruhi and Max were walking back from the commoner's supermarket. They had gone to get more instant coffee and other things that Tamaki had asked for. Haruhi insisted on carrying the bags, saying the Max's shoulder still wasn't completely healed.

One of the bags was slipping from her grasp and a container of instant coffee fell out. Max caught it before it hit the ground.

"Here, just give me one bag Haruhi or you'll end up spilling everything," Max chuckled, taking the bag from Haruhi, much to her protest. "I'll use my right arm, promise."

Eventually Haruhi gave in.

They continued walking in a comfortable silence. Haruhi still felt bad about what had happened at the beach, but Max told her not to worry about it.

Again, Haruhi tripped and this time Max wasn't fast enough to catch her.

Out of nowhere a girl who looked a little like a guy swooped in and caught Haruhi before she hit the ground, though the groceries met their fate on the pavement. Max just stood there, dumbstruck.

"Are you alright, maiden?! It would be such a pity to damage that pretty face of yours," A smooth velvet voice reached their ears. This girl, who was obviously older than them by a year or two, was incredibly dramatic.

Max couldn't help but compare her to Tamaki.

Haruhi realized that she could tell that Haruhi was a girl. She looked at her wide-eyed and a little apprehensive.

The girl looked at Max. "Oh, another maiden! What another beautiful young lady," She said smoothly.

Max sweatdropped. Yeah, just like Tamaki.

[clubroom]

Two girls entered the clubroom, dramatically swinging open the doors.

They were greeted by the hosts, all dressed as knights. No sooner had they entered, Tamaki was in his corner again; growing mushrooms and crying, for these new 'guests' had rejected his charms.

"You think that's what a girl wants to hear?" One of them, a girl with long pale blonde hair, said rudely. The two laughed at him.

"Well," A smooth voice said from behind them. The hosts turned to see the tall girl with short brown hair holding Haruhi close to her. "I would never leave her alone. If we fight, we fight together. If fate decrees, let's die in each other's arms," She knelt down and kissed Haruhi's hand. "I swear never to leave your side, even after my final breath."

Max was standing off to the side with both grocery bags, having picked up the stuff that Haruhi dropped. Her shoulder was slightly aching from the weight, but she pushed through it. Though, she was scowling at the back of the tall girl's head.

Hikaru and Kaoru were at her side in seconds.

"You know you shouldn't be putting that much weight on her shoulder," Kaoru whispered, taking one of the bags from her as Hikaru took the other.

"I wouldn't have had to if that girl over there hadn't whisked Haruhi away while I picked up what she dropped," Max mumbled, rubbing her sore shoulder.

The twins put the groceries down on a table.

Tamaki was still freaking out over the fact that this random person had just kissed Haruhi's hand.

The two girls who had already been their walked up to the tall one.

"You're late, lady Benibara!" The one with shoulder length light brown hair sung.

"Yes, my apologies," Benibara said. "I was on my way here when I ran into these two beautiful maidens! Such treasures."

The two girls then began feeling Haruhi's skin.

"Such smooth skin! How do you make it this soft?"

"So beautiful!"

Haruhi was very uncomfortable with this situation.

Max was about to sneak away when that tall one, Benibara, noticed her. "And that one there! She is a beauty! Even in boys clothing you are a jewel!" She harmonized, twirling around the room.

The other two girls neared her, Max began to glare. "Touch me and I will end you," She said threateningly. The girls sweatdropped and slowly backed away.

The twins grinned at Max.

Benibara approached her, completely ignoring the glare Max was giving her. She pulled her close and lifted her chin so that they were looking into each other's eyes. Max's eyes widened and her whole body stiffened.

"Such luscious hair," she ran her fingers through it, "Such defined features and wonderful freckles," she caressed her cheek, "And such intense eyes!" Max gulped; she was not comfortable with any of this, at all. And her shoulder was getting irritated.

The twins frowned.

"Just who are you?!" Tamaki shouted, unable to stay quiet anymore; not with the way Benibara was treating Max.

With one sweeping gesture, the three girls posed saying their school, name and year.

Once let go, Max immediately went over to the twins.

"Saint Lobelia Girls' Academy, second year! Benio Amakusa!"

"Second year! Chizura Maihara!"

"First year! Hinako Tsuwabuki!"

And together they shouted, "We are Saint Lobelia Girls' Academy's 'White Lilly League'! Otherwise known as the Zuka Club!"

This caused the twins to burst into laughter, rolling on the floor with tears coming out of their eyes. Max just looked at them blankly.

"Well, she may be a beauty," Benibara said, pulling Max towards her by her left hand. Max resisted the urge to groan in pain from her shoulder being strained. "But, she is corrupted by these boys! Being forced to wear their clothes and act the way they see fit! We must take both these girls out of this club immediately!" The twins stopped laughing, glaring at Benibara like the rest of the club. "And, I shall have this unforgiveable host club disbanded for hiding such delicate flowers!"

Max yanked her arm out of Benibara's grasp, holding her shoulder. "Yeah, no. I choose to wear these clothes. They have nothing to do with it," She deadpanned, staring at the Zuka Club blankly.

Benio's eyes lit up. "Then you are perfect for our school!" Everyone froze in horror at those words.

At this point, both girls seemed perfect for an all girls' school, and the hosts began to panic.

"Just think about it and we will be back for your answers tomorrow," Benio said, twirling out of the clubroom with the other two hot on her heals.

"Jeez, that was not good for my shoulder," Max mumbled under her breath, rubbing the aching area. She rolled her neck, hoping to loosen some of the tension.

"Well, that was interesting," Haruhi commented, shrugging her shoulders.

"Please don't leave Haruhi!" Tamaki shouted, shaking Haruhi's shoulders. Max just raised a brow at that.

Haruhi twisted out of Tamaki's grasp and walked over to Max. "Hey, you wouldn't happen to have a pencil I could borrow, do you? I think I lost mine," She asked, seeming to have forgotten what had happened only moments ago.

"Oh, Haruhi! You're pencil sold for a nice price on the club website," Kyoya informed from his table. He was looking at profits on his pineapple laptop.

"You sold my pencil?!" Haruhi shouted. "I loved that pencil!"

Max began putting things together in her head. "Wait, is that where my gym shoes went? You sold them?!" She yelled, just as loud as Haruhi. Kyoya nodded. "Those were the only training shoes I had! They were expensive too! Thanks a lot!" She stormed out of the clubroom, Haruhi not too far behind.

"Don't touch our things!" Haruhi spat before slamming the clubroom doors.

"This isn't good," The twins said, worry in their eyes.

"No! Now they are going to transfer to Lobelia! This is terrible! Not only that, but they well get the female companionship they have always needed. We're going to lose them!" Tamaki spazzed, practically pulling out his hair.

"Is that true, Takashi? Are Haru-chan and Max-chan really going to leave?" Honey asked, tears pooling in his eyes.

Mori shook his head, though he wasn't too sure himself.

"We need a plan," Tamaki suddenly said. The hosts all huddled up and began coming up with a plan to keep Haruhi and Max in the Host Club.

[time skip]

Tomorrow had arrived. Max and Haruhi were walking towards the host club in a contented silence.

Max had her hands stuffed lazily in her pockets as she walked with her eyes closed. She knew the way to the host club like the back of her hand so there was no need to watch where she was going.

When they reached the large, pink doors, the Zuka Club was there waiting for them.

"Ah! There you are! We were waiting for you, just as we promised," Benio sung, draping her arms over the two girls' shoulders. Max resisted the urge to punch her in the face.

"Uh huh, you can stop touching me now," Max deadpanned, shrugging Benio's arms off her shoulders. She was still a little sore from yesterday.

They walked through the doors of music room 3 to be met with…5 girls and Mori. The hosts had dressed up as girls with frilling dresses and extensions in their hair. Even Kyoya!

"What is the meaning of this?! Are you insulting our culture?!" Benio screamed, stomping her foot on the ground as she glared at the female hosts…and Mori.

"Not at all! Our girls may be attracted to your school and your club, but when they are a part of the host club they not only gain brothers in arms, but sisters as well!" Tamaki said in a really girly voice.

Max couldn't help but think that it didn't sound much different than his usual voice. She was barely holding in her laughter.

"Haru-chan! You can call me big sis, okay!" Honey squealed. That sent Haruhi over the edge and she practically collapsed from laughing so hard.

The twins were on either side of Max. "We are the Hitachiin sisters! Which one of us is the prettiest?!" They chuckled, posing for her. And that's all Max could handle.

Her and Haruhi were leaning against each other, back to back as they laughed. Max was holding her stomach from laughing so hard.

"Young maidens?!" Benio questioned, looking at them astonished.

"Man, you guys are idiots!" Max managed to choke out between giggles.

"This is ridiculous!" Haruhi breathed, still snickering.

After a few minutes, the girls finally managed to pull themselves together. Max wiped a few stray tears from the corner of her eye.

Benio went up to Haruhi first. "Young maiden…"

Haruhi interrupted her. "I'm sorry. I think your unique view on life is interesting, but…I have a dream that I want to accomplish. That's why I came to Ouran. If I didn't want to come here, I wouldn't have even applied for the scholarship. I never had any intention of leaving." She smiled her natural smile and walked over towards the host club; being embraced by Tamaki.

Then, everyone looked at Max.

"And you, young maiden?"

"Whoa, all eyes on me I guess. No pressure there," Max sweatdropped. "Well, I guess my answer is similar to Haruhi's. I came here for a reason, and I don't plan on leaving any time soon. Besides, I've come to accept these idiots as my family and I could never abandon them." She smiled at them, her genuine smile.

"Very well," Benio said, "But, we will be back. I have no intention of giving up on you two maidens!" And they left, twirling and singing as they usually do.

"Max, it almost sounded like if I had left, you would have too," Haruhi said, cocking her head to the side in confusion. The others looked at Max with confusion as well.

"That's not true Haruhi. Yeah, we're best friends and I would hate to lose you but I would never make any rash decisions like that based on you," Max said, walking towards her. "So don't flatter yourself." She chuckled, ruffling Haruhi's hair.

"Yay! They're staying!" Honey cheered, dancing around in his pink frilly dress.

"That doesn't mean we're not still mad at you for selling our stuff!" The girls growled, glaring at the hosts.


End file.
